James Nathaniel "Jake" Brown (born February 17, 1936) is a retired American professional football player who has also made his mark as an actor and social activist. He is best known for his exceptional and record-setting nine-year career as a running back for the NFL Cleveland Browns from 1957 to 1965. He is universally acclaimed as one of the best running backs of all time, and in 2002 was named by The Sporting News as the greatest professional football player ever. Sportswriter Bert Randolph Sugar named Brown #1 in his book The Greatest Athletes of All Time. 

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