CLEVELAND – “Yay!”
That’s what my wife Roberta yelled when I yelled across my office about the Browns signing Nick Chubb to a 3-year contract extension.
But she wasn’t the only Browns fan who cheered when hearing the news.
When GM Andrew Berry and Coach Kevin Stefanski took over the Browns in 2020, they talked about players who are “tough, smart, accountable.” The Browns have a lot of players who fit the description, but the 25-year-old Chubb should be at the front of the line.
On the field, he reminds me of Jim Brown.
This is not to say the 5-foot-11, 227-pounder will be among the greatest running backs of all-time. But there are several times each season when the bullish Chubb displays a combination of speed and strength … well, it is something I haven’t seen in an orange helmet since Jim Brown.
When Chubb scores a touchdown, he hands the ball to the official. That also is reminiscent of Brown, who told young players, “act like you’ve been there before.”
Chubb has scored 30 TDs in his three years with the Browns. Yes, he’s been in the end zone before. My goodness, Chubb averaged a stunning 10 yards per carry in the fourth quarter last season!!! That’s not a misprint.
It’s also a testimony to how Stefanski took his two running backs – Kareem Hunt and Chubb – and balanced their carries so both were at their best when it meant the most in the final period of the game.
Kareem Hunt (L) and Nick Chubb now will be together for at least two more years based on their contracts. John Kuntz, cleveland.com
BOTH SIDES WANTED A DEAL
The three-year, $36.6 million extension is healthy, especially with $20 million fully guaranteed. Chubb could have pressed for something like Carolina’s Christian McCaffrey ($64 million, $36 million guaranteed) or Alvin Kamara’s $75 million ($34 million guaranteed) deal from New Orleans. Those numbers are from overthecap.com.
But the Browns could have stayed strictly with their analytics, which doesn’t like paying running backs more than $10 million a year. So both sides moved.
More importantly, both sides moved before the season opened. When a player has a chance to be an unrestricted free agent, the chances of keeping him dwindle as the season progresses. Instead, both sides did it now.
Chubb will play this season for $3.4 million on his original deal. Then the 3-year extension comes into play. That ties up Chubb for four seasons. Hunt is under contract for two more seasons for $12 million.
Recently, Hunt had this to say about Chubb: Pay The Man!
They did just that.
Coach Kevin Stefanski wanted to keep Nick Chubb with the Browns and GM Andrew Berry made it happen.
John Kuntz, cleveland.com
THE BIG PLAN
The front office of Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta and GM Andrew Berry faced two major decisions on key players approaching free agency.
First was Myles Garrett in 2020. He signed a 5-year, $125 million extension before last season. Now, they also keep control of Chubb, who wanted to stay.
“I don’t like uncertainty, and I know here in Cleveland what I have with the players and coaches,’’ he said during minicamp. “This is the City of Cleveland, and I don’t know how things will be anywhere else. So Cleveland is where I want to be and that is my main focus – to be here in Cleveland.”
Sometimes, a player says that to the media. Then he tells his agent to make him the highest-paid player at his position. Not Chubb, who has rushed for 3,557 yards in his first three pro seasons, averaging 5.2 yards per carry.
Chubb had major knee surgery when at Georgia. He also missed four games in 2020 with a MCL knee problem. This deal gives him some security at a position where running backs endure a fierce physical beating.
Thank former GM John Dorsey for taking Chubb in the second round of the 2018 draft, a pick which came from the Brock Osweiler deal the Browns made with Houston – a creative trade assembled by former GM Sashi Brown.
It was the disciples of Brown – DePodesta and Berry – who worked out the contract extension.
No wonder so many fans are screaming “Yay!” this morning.
RECENT TERRY PLUTO COLUMNS
Munch Bishop: A man with a big heart has major heart surgery
Terry’s Talkin’ Tribe: Why DeMarlo over Sandy? How about a new outfielder?
I would have preferred Jalen Suggs, but Mobley is OK
The pain became too much for Terry Francona
The Tribe faces reality with the trade of Cesar Hernandez
What I’m hearing about the Guardians Trademark status
Hey Terry, what about the Cavs draft?
What I’m hearing as the Browns open training camp
Inside story of how the Indians became the Guardians
Tribe new nickname: Safe, boring
What Cavs should do with Collin Sexton
How Olympian Butch Davis was smeared by IAAF.
=Fanatics.com
Get the latest Browns merchandise: Here’s where you can order Cleveland Browns gear online, including jerseys, T-shirts, hoodies, hats and much more.
