CLEVELAND — All things considered, it would have been hard to ask for more from the Cleveland Browns' rushing attack, which totaled 215 yards and 3 touchdowns in the team's 35-30 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night.
But according to the man who helped open up several of the holes in the Bengals defense for Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt to run through, Thursday could have been an even bigger night for Cleveland's run game.
"We could have had 300 or 400 yards if we wanted," Browns fullback Andy Janovich said on Friday.
That, of course, wasn't necessary, as Chubb's 124 yards and Hunt's 86 yards proved to be enough for Cleveland on Thursday night. Both Browns running backs also reached the end zone twice against the Bengals, with Chubb doing so on a pair of runs and Hunt scoring on a rush and a reception.
That, however, hardly diminishes the point made by Janovich, who Cleveland acquired from the Denver Broncos in a trade earlier this year. After the Browns' running game never seemed to have a chance to establish itself in a blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1, Thursday marked the first true opportunity for both Chubb and Hunt to shine in new head coach Kevin Stefanski's offensive scheme.
And shine they did.
"They're probably the two best running backs in the NFL," Janovich said. "Nick's just a powerful guy and then Hunt, he's got a lot of wiggle to him. People just bounce off him, I don't know how he does it. If somebody touches me, I fall down. It's just impressive watching those guys."
While Chubb and Hunt found steady success against the Bengals on Thursday, that rang especially true in the fourth quarter. Entering the final period of the game leading 28-16, the Browns' dynamic running back duo rushed for 111 combined yards to seal Cleveland's first win of the 2020 campaign.
"In four-minute, they know we are running it, we know we are running it," Stefanski said. "And it is just mano y mano football, and I thought the guys responded."
If the Browns are going to continue their offensive success, the combination of Chubb and Hunt will likely be a big reason why. And Janovich doesn't see any reason for the duo to be slowed down anytime soon.
"Like I said, I think they're the two best in the NFL," he said. "You see it, one cut and they're gone. They're just gashing people... they're so hard to take down. I wouldn't want to tackle them. It's awesome to watch and it's awesome to block for those guys."