CLEVELAND — Just how good will the Cleveland Browns’ offense be during the 2019 regular season?
That is the question that has been facing the Browns since they signed free-agent running back Kareem Hunt in February and acquired Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in a trade with the New York Giants a little more than a month later.
With three weeks of training camp under their belts, the Browns are starting to see how much talent there will be on the field in 2019.
“I’m excited for the direction we’re moving in,” receiver Odell Beckham Jr. said following Thursday’s joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana. “I can see it.
“I can feel it from you guys. I can feel it from the fans. I can feel it from this team. They’re excited about this season. First time being in the stadium, I can feel that energy. I told you I’m an empath. I can really feel that, so I know that they’re ready. I know we’re going to be ready when it’s time.”
Running back Kareem Hunt added, “It’s a lot of big pieces to this offense. It’s hard to really find or point out a weak spot on this team, offensively and defensively.”
Like Beckham Jr. in the passing game, Hunt figures to be a key part of the Browns’ rushing attack during the second half of the 2019 season after he serves an eight-game suspension for a physical altercation involving a woman at a Cleveland hotel/apartment complex in February of 2018.
If Hunt fulfills the terms of his suspension and is reinstated, he has an opportunity to be part of a special backfield.
Second-year running back Nick Chubb finished the 2018 season, one in which he saw limited time in the first seven games, with 996 yards and eight touchdowns on 192 carries. Chubb had 11 20-yard runs, four 40-yard bursts and 47 first-down conversions.
A second-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of the University of Georgia, Chubb rushed for 788 of his 996 yards and five of his eight touchdowns on 140 carries under the direction of coach Freddie Kitchens. After the changes in the coaching staff, Chubb averaged 5.63 yards per carry and became a contributing player in the passing game as well.
In two years with the Chiefs, Hunt rushed for 2,151 yards and 15 touchdowns with 106 first downs, 19 plays going for at least 20 yards and four 40-yard gains. Additionally, Hunt caught 79 passes out of the backfield for 833 yards and 10 touchdowns, including a single-season career high of seven in 2018.
As a rookie in 2017, Hunt went from not expected to have a large role in the offense to rushing for an NFL-best 1,327 yards on 272 carries, an average of 4.9 yards per attempt, which earned him a spot on the AFC Pro Bowl team.
“We’ve just got a number of receivers, running back talent, a great quarterback, the same thing K.C. has, so there’s similarities,” Hunt said.
Unlike past seasons where a key injury or lengthy suspension would send the team on a tailspin, Beckham Jr. feels this version of the Browns is built to withstand Hunt missing eight games and receiver Antonio Callaway having to serve a four-game ban for a violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy.
“I can see it just from being out here, and just thinking about when everybody gets in how scary it’s going to be, but I’m looking at now and whoever’s out on that field is going to be scary,” Beckham Jr. said. “It’s always been a next-man-up-mentality, so whoever’s out there, I just think we’re in a very good position.”