Cleveland climbed back to the top of the eastern division in 1964 with a 10–3–1 record behind Jim Brown's league-leading 1,446 yards of rushing. Rookie wide receiver Paul Warfield led the team with 52 catches, and Frank Ryan cemented his place as the team's starting quarterback, recording the best game of his career in the season closer against the New York Giants, a game the Browns needed to win to advance to the championship. Yet despite Cleveland's prowess, the Browns went into the championship game as heavy underdogs against the Baltimore Colts. Most sportswriters predicted an easy win for the Colts, who led the league in scoring behind quarterback Johnny Unitas and halfback Lenny Moore. The Browns' defense, moreover, was suspect. The team gave up 20 more first downs than any other in the league. The teams, however, had not faced each other for three years. Before the game, Collier and Colts coach Don Shula agreed to give each other full access to video of regular-season games. Ever the student, Collier took full advantage of the opportunity. The Browns had run what was dubbed a "rubber band" pass defense, allowing short throws while trying to prevent big plays. The Colts' top receivers, however, Raymond Berry and Jimmy Orr, were not fast. They tended to pick apart defenses with short, tactical completions, which led Collier to institute a man-to-man pass defense for the game. This, he figured, would buy more time for the defensive line and force Unitas to scramble — not his forte.