CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb was disappointed in himself after a Sunday Night Football loss to the Los Angeles Rams at FirstEnergy Stadium and he vented those frustrations on the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore Sunday.
Still stinging after being stopped short on fourth-and-nine in the second half, Chubb rushed for 165 yards and three touchdowns, including two third-quarter scores and an 88-yard scamper in the fourth quarter that helped seal the Browns’ 40-25 victory over the Ravens, which put them into first place in the AFC North Division after the first quarter of the 2019 season.
And people took notice of Chubb’s performance, as he was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday morning.
The Browns had an answer for Lamar Jackson’s touchdown pass, and it came in the form of an 88-yard scoring run from Chubb early in the fourth quarter.
On first-and-15 from the Cleveland 12-yard line after a false start penalty against tight end Demetrius Harris, Chubb caught a pitch from quarterback Baker Mayfield, hustled through a hole created by the right side of the line and tight end Pharaoh Brown and raced 88 yards untouched for the touchdown.
Although the Browns failed to convert the two-point attempt, they held a 30-18 lead over the Ravens with 9:35 to play in regulation.
“He’s an unbelievable player,” quarterback Baker Mayfield said. “I think the offensive line played great and you see some of the plays that … I’m not sure which touchdown it was, the one where he made a bunch of people miss … [The line] just opened up a hole for him and he went and made a play.”
That 88-yard run was just icing on the cake for Chubb and the Browns.
After Baltimore kicker Justin Tucker evened the score at 10-10 early in the third quarter, Chubb capped off the ensuing drive with a 14-yard touchdown run that started with him running right and cutting back all the way across the field to the end zone and faking out several defenders on the run.
The Browns continued feeding the ball to Chubb, and he constantly moved the offense across the goal line.
Later, Chubb capped off an eight-play, 84-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run behind left tackle Greg Robinson, which gave the Browns a 24-10 lead over the Ravens with 53 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
“He can roll,” Mayfield said. “I think people underestimate his speed. Once he gets to that second level, he’s got true break-away speed. People say he’s a power back, which he is, it takes more than one guy to bring him down, but he’s got that speed to make a play like that.”