John Edward "The Body" Brown (April 9, 1922 – June 1, 2009) was an American football player who played at the center and linebacker positions.

He attended and played football at Theodore Roosevelt High School in Gary, Indiana.

His college career was interrupted by service in the United States Army during World War II.

[3] In April 1947, Brown signed with the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference.

He was also among the first group of players (along with Ezzrett "Sugarfoot" Anderson, Dons teammate Bert Piggott, and Elmore Harris) from historically-black universities to play professional football.