Ruben Parnell Brown (born February 13, 1972) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

for 13 seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Pittsburgh Panthers The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer to other aspects of the university such as alumni, facul ...

. He was selected by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

14th overall in the

1995 NFL draft The 1995 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1995 at the Paramount ...

. Brown played nine seasons for the Bills and four more for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

, starting all 181 games in which he played. He was a four-time

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

and nine-time

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

selection, including eight consecutive Pro Bowl selections with the Bills from 1996 to 2003. He is the older brother of former NFL linebacker Cornell Brown. Brown attended E. C. Glass High School in

Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. First settled in 1757 by ferry owner and Abolitionism, abolitionist John Lynch (1740–1820), J ...

Professional career

Buffalo Bills

Brown was the starting left guard for the

, where he was named to eight consecutive AFC

teams from to . He was also a four-time 2nd-team All-Pro. Brown was a three-time nominee for the

Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year is an award presented annually by the National Football League (NFL) honoring a player's commitment to philanthropy and community impact, as well as his excellence on the field. Prior to 1999, it was called si ...

during his tenure with Buffalo.

Chicago Bears

Brown then signed with the

in 2004, but only started in nine games due to injuries. He had a revival in his career in the 2006 season after the Bears made

Super Bowl XLI Super Bowl XLI was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2006 Indianapolis Colts season, Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion 2006 Chicago Bears season, Chicag ...

, and was named to the

2007 Pro Bowl The 2007 Pro Bowl was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2006 season. The game took place on February 10, 2007, at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game was held on a Saturday instead of the usual Sunday after the Super ...

. In 2007, Brown played in eight games before being placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

by the Bears on November 8, 2007, due to an injured shoulder. Brown became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after the 2007 season. He expressed interest in returning to Chicago, commenting his three-year stint with the Bears rejuvenated his career. The Bears did re-sign Brown.

Retirement

After spending the 2008 season out of football, Brown officially announced his retirement on February 2, 2009.

Broadcasting career

Brown currently co-hosts ''The Enforcers'', a weekly television show in Buffalo, NY, with former

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

player

Rob Ray Robert John Ray (born June 8, 1968) is a Canadian sports broadcaster and former professional ice hockey player for the Buffalo Sabres and Ottawa Senators. He was awarded the King Clancy Memorial Trophy by the National Hockey League in 1999 f ...

. Brown is also a regular pundit on Canadian talkshow "Off the Record", which airs on TSN. He also served as an analyst for the syndication network broadcasting the

Fall Experimental Football League The Fall Experimental Football League (FXFL) was a professional football minor league that played two seasons in 2014 and 2015. This league's stated goal was to become a professional feeder-system for the National Football League (NFL). The le ...

. Brown has co-hosted, along with Mike Catalana, ''Bills Tonight'', the Bills' official weekly post game on

MSG Western New York MSG Western New York (MSG WNY) is an American regional sports network that is a joint venture between MSG Entertainment and Hockey Western New York LLC. The channel (also on occasion credited as ''Pegula Sports Network'' or ''MSG Buffalo'') is ...

, since 2016.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Ruben Players of American football from Englewood, New Jersey Players of American football from Lynchburg, Virginia American football offensive tackles American football offensive guards Pittsburgh Panthers football players Buffalo Bills players Chicago Bears players American Conference Pro Bowl players National Conference Pro Bowl players 1972 births Living people College Football Hall of Fame inductees