Doug Dieken to retire after five decades with Browns as player and broadcaster

The Browns will have a massive hole to fill in the offseason.For the first time in more than five decades, Doug Dieken won't be part of the organization.The affable, knowledgeable, likable former left tackle will retire as the team's radio analyst following the finale Sunday vs. the Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium."It's been a great ride," Dieken, 72, said in the news release Tuesday. "I want to thank the Browns fans for accepting me first as a player and then as a broadcaster. I've had the most fantastic teammates on the field, in the radio booth and in the community to make the last 50 years fun."We didn't get the wins we all hoped for, but I feel like I'm leaving a winner because of my association with the organization and the great fans who listen to our broadcasts."Kevin Stefanski says Baker Mayfield won't play in finale, going to schedule surgery ASAPDieken arrived in Northeast Ohio in 1971 as a sixth-round draft pick out of the University of Illinois. After 14 years in the huddle, he moved to the broadcast booth.He's been partners with play-by-play voice Jim Donovan since the team returned in 1999 and they are close friends. Dieken was a great complement to the excitable Donovan, often sitting with his arms folded and contributing understated reactions.He will be honored by the Browns during the game Sunday."It's hard to think of a Cleveland Browns game without Doug Dieken being a part of it, and it'll be very difficult for me to look to my right and not see him there," Donovan said. "For 23 years, it's been amazing having him alongside to call games on the Browns radio network."He was a great player and he's a Browns legend and he's a great broadcaster that fits so well with what the Cleveland Browns are all about. He's connected with their fans, and it's going to be a big adjustment for all of us come next season when he's not there."Commentary: Browns turned season of hope into season of despairThe team will search for a replacement to join Donovan.Dieken played tight end at Illinois but quickly transitioned to left tackle and played in 203 consecutive games, including 194 straight starts, which is an NFL record for the position.He made the Pro Bowl in the Kardiac Kids season of 1980 and retired after 1984. He became a broadcaster the following season, worked with Nev Chandler, Jim Mueller and Casey Coleman during his career and missed only two games."Doug Dieken has been a great representative of the Cleveland Browns for more than 50 years, and all he's done for our organization is greatly appreciated," owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam said. "To have a career as he did on the field with the record number of consecutive games played and then become the steady and consistent voice he has been in the radio booth is genuinely remarkable."Doug has that uncanny ability to connect with people. … He is the Cleveland Browns, and his legacy will not be forgotten."Dieken worked behind then took over for seven-time Pro Bowler Dick Schafrath during his rookie season to become just the third left tackle in the franchise's history. Dieken became a fixture."He's the only left tackle I ever knew," said quarterback Brian Sipe, the NFL's MVP in 1980 who played behind Dieken from 1974-83. "He was dependable. That's the thing about Doug. I never had to think twice about what was happening on that left edge. He just got the job done."Dieken took pride in his opponents accusing him of holding, even getting a "MEHOLD" vanity license plate that he changed to "MEHELD" after retirement. It's an example of the great sense of humor that came through when talking about the Browns on radio and TV and in guest appearances on "The Big Chuck and Lil' John Show."But at his heart, he was a football player."He was a fierce competitor," Sipe said. "We kidded him a lot. He relished the fact that there were always arguments on the field because of his holding, which I personally was grateful for. He was proud of it."It's a testament to his effectiveness. He just frustrated people, and that's how good he was."Dieken is a West Sider whose thoughtfulness reaches beyond friends, colleagues and zip codes.He was selected the Byron "Whizzer" White NFL Man of the Year in 1983, mentored players during his consistent trips to the locker room and practice field and has raised more than $250,000 for Special Olympics since his playing days.Dieken served as an ambassador for the Cleveland Browns Trust during the three years the franchise was out of the league."He's exactly the type of person you want representing the Cleveland Browns organization because he does everything right when he was a player, and he did everything right when he was in media," said 10-time Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas, who wore No. 73 like Dieken. "He was such a joy to work with, and he was such a joy to listen to now that I get to sit at home and listen to the Browns on the radio when I'm watching on TV."