Cleveland fans of this generation of Browns football haven’t had a ton of reasons to smile.
Nick Chubb was a reason to smile.
The sad part of Chubb’s Browns tenure is that he struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness in his final days, a tenure which is now over with Chubb reportedly signing with the Houston Texans in free agency.
But don’t worry about those final days. When Browns fans remember Chubb, they should remember the totality of a legendary Cleveland career.
The Browns picked Chubb 35th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Georgia. He was the super muscular running back with legendary photos of a muscle-bound high school track superstar that went viral when he was chosen.
In his first season, he ran for 996 yards, and then he went for more than 1,000 in each of the next four.
In Chubb’s first five seasons, he reached at least eight rushing TDs every year.
The end came quickly, a nasty Minkah Fitzpatrick tackle in Week 2 of 2023 destroying Chubb’s knee and sending him into an injury-plagued 2024, as well.
But his career stats with Cleveland are historic.
Chubb finishes ranked third in Browns history with 6,843 rushing yards and 51 touchdowns, behind just Jim Brown and Leroy Kelly.
His 5.1 yards per carry also finish third among the top-10 rushers, behind just Brown and Marion Motley.
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Chubb played fewer games with Cleveland than the rest of the top-nine rushers in franchise history, but he made them count.
He also protected the football, fumbling only eight times in 85 games.
Before the injury-ridden end, Chubb was one of the hardest players in the NFL to tackle. He always got the extra yards. He was a hard worker who Cleveland fans found it easy to root for.
Now, he’ll go to a probably playoff team in Houston, where hopefully Chubb has a little more juice to be an effective NFL running back once again.
And although his days in Cleveland are over, Chubb’s Browns legacy as one of the best to ever tote the football for the Browns is secure.
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