BEREA, Ohio -- Finding a consistent running game has been a challenge for Hue Jackson in his two-plus years as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, but the opposite might prove to be true during the 2018 season.
The Browns signed free agent Carlos Hyde, selected Nick Chubb with a second-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and reached a long-term extension for emerging playmaker Duke Johnson Jr., all since the middle of March, and that trio of talented ball carriers plans on making some noise this season.
“It could be fun,” Johnson Jr. said. “It definitely could be fun. Between myself, Carlos and ‘Old School,’ which is Chubb, we definitely could be something special.
“We have to find our roles. Each one of us has to find a role and not be upset about it, not get bothered by it, but embrace it, and the sooner we embrace it and the sooner we understand what our role is for this team, the better we’ll be.”
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Over his 50 games in four years with the San Francisco 49ers, Hyde turned 655 carries into 2,729 yards and 21 touchdowns with 133 first downs, 15 20-yard rushes and three 40-yard bursts. Additionally, the 6-foot, 235-pound Hyde, a native of Cincinnati and product of The Ohio State University, caught 109 passes out of the backfield for 634 yards and three touchdowns.
“Not just Coach Haley, but Coach Hue also. He stresses it also,” Hyde said. “He lets us know that we’re going to run the ball a lot. It’s good to hear from the head coach that we’re going to run the ball a lot. We’ll see. Once the season gets here, we’ll see.
“Just more ‘Be ready to go. Our plan is to run the ball, so be ready to go and run the ball a lot.’”
Despite sharing carries with Sony Michel, who was selected by the New England Patriots late in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, the 5-foot-10, 225-pound Chubb rushed for 4,769 yards and 44 touchdowns on 758 carries in four years with the Georgia Bulldogs.
A native of Cedartown, Georgia, Chubb eclipsed the 200-carry and 1,000-yard marks in three of his four seasons “between the hedges,” and helped the Bulldogs reach the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship Game despite having a freshman quarterback at the helm of the offense.
Chubb began the 1,000-yard rushing campaigns with a career-high 1,547 yards and 14 touchdowns on 219 carries during his freshman season.
After being limited to just 747 yards on 92 carries in an injury-shortened sophomore year, Chubb punctuated his collegiate career with back-to-back 1,100-yard seasons.
“I think it’s coming along well,” Chubb said. “You pick your poison. We have talented running backs, so it’ll be hard to stop for a defense. It’s hard for them to plan and scheme. I come from a crowded backfield too, so it’s nothing new to me. Good competition brings more out of you. I look forward to competing with these guys and learning from them, and eventually, playing with and winning some games with them.
“Very confident because it has worked in the past for me. We went a long ways last year with us splitting the carries and thing like that. It’s proven to work, and it’ll be even greater here with additional, another great back. It’ll be fun.”
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