The Cleveland Browns offense put up over 550 yards of total offense in a 32-point performance against a strong Denver Broncos defense on Monday Night Football, but running back Nick Chubb wasn't a significant part of the effort.
As a result, the Bleacher Report Scouting Department on Monday, Dec. 2, advised the team to demote Chubb in favor of third-year running back Jerome Ford.
"Maybe Nick Chubb needs more time to get back to himself after his devastating knee injury last season. Maybe he's just hitting the age cliff as he turns 29 later this month. Either way, he is not the Browns' most explosive runner right now," B/R wrote. "It might be time to officially shift to Jerome Ford as the lead back. Cleveland mostly went with the younger back as the game went on, but the two had split carries with six apiece in the first half and Ford was much more efficient."
Chubb is in the final year of his contract with the Browns and agreed to convert the majority of his guaranteed money into incentives in order to remain with Cleveland in 2024.
That paradigm renders a continued relationship via a new deal unlikely, particularly if the team shelves Chubb for Ford down the stretch of what is already a lost season.
A four-time Pro Bowler, Chubb is one of the best backs in the NFL when healthy. He will certainly want the opportunity to start somewhere in 2025, and if Cleveland can't or won't offer that to him, Chubb is likely to end up playing in a new uniform for the first time in his professional career.
Despite how great Chubb has been for the franchise, it may not make sense for the Browns to keep him around either, as Ford carries a salary cap hit of less than $1.2 million in 2025.
