Nick Chubb has spent his entire NFL career with the Cleveland Browns and has become one of the franchise’s best running backs ever in the process.
In seven seasons, Chubb has logged 6,624 rushing yards and 49 touchdowns. But Chubb suffered a season-ending leg injury at the beginning of the 2023 season, it carried into 2024 and, since returning, he hasn’t looked the same.
What does Chubb’s future in Cleveland look like?
Chubb will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season. In three games this year, Chubb has run for just 113 yards and one touchdown, averaging just 2.7 yards per carry.
Even though Chubb hasn’t played his best football since returning, it’s hard to imagine that the Browns will get rid of him.
Chubb has been a staple in the franchise since entering the NFL in 2018, and he posted an ode to Cleveland right before his 2024 debut.
But the running back might have to take a pay cut.
He signed a three-year, $36.6 million extension with the Browns ahead of the 2021 season. Chubb is now 28 years old and is already well past the average career of NFL running backs, 2.6 years, and it’s hard to imagine the Browns will give him that kind of money.
It’s a possibility that Chubb could sign a one-year deal with the Browns and use the 2025 season as a tryout for a higher paycheck. Or he could sign something longer-term and the Browns could pick up another running back in free agency or the NFL Draft and use a running-back-by-committee system.
While Chubb is getting older, it’s worth noting that he was a star in the NFL not long ago.
Before getting hurt in 2023, Chubb ran for 170 yards and averaged 6.2 yards per carry in two games. In 2022, he ran for 1,525 yards and 12 touchdowns.
It’s hard to believe that the Browns would get rid of someone so well-regarded in the franchise, especially coming off a gruesome injury. But stranger things have happened in the NFL.
Chubb hasn’t spoken recently about his future with Cleveland, but the veteran back’s letter to the fans indicates that he wants to be a Brown for life.
