With Nick Chubb's return ‘increasingly unlikely,' Browns shifting focus to rookie RBs

New York Times

09-05-2025

BEREA, Ohio — Rookie minicamp is mostly just a playbook orientation that includes about 70 minutes of football exercises.
For the Cleveland Browns, Friday's official start of rookie camp marked the first day of the team's new chapter at running back. Jerome Ford is back for now, Nick Chubb is likely moving on and the new kids in town were on the practice field.
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As expected, second-round pick Quinshon Judkins was first in every line as the Browns' rookies went through the practice reps, and fourth-round running back Dylan Sampson was close behind.
Judkins will almost certainly become the team's feature runner at some point during his rookie season. Sampson's exact role is to be determined, but he'll be looking to move up the depth chart and potentially win a third-down job. As the Browns drafted two running backs and Ford chose to take a pay cut in the final year of his rookie deal to reduce his 2025 salary to a guaranteed $1.75 million, Chubb remains a free agent — and it appears his seven-season run in Cleveland is over.
After months of talking around the near-certainty of Chubb's exit, Browns general manager Andrew Berry said in a radio interview Friday morning that the Browns don't expect the four-time Pro Bowler to return.
'I wouldn't rule anything out, but I would say it's probably increasingly unlikely,' Berry told 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, one of the Browns' official radio partners. 'We do have two young guys that we like. We think Jerome plays a role. It's basically kind of maybe seeing how the roles shake out in the running back room.
'You're never going to rule out someone as near and dear to our heart as Nick, and I would expect him to take another step being a year removed from the knee injury. But I'd say a return is less likely, at least in the short term, with us right now.'
Chubb has been one of the best and most popular players of the Browns' post-1999 era. From 2018 to 2022, he was one of the NFL's most consistent running backs. Chubb suffered multiple knee injuries in September 2023 and required multiple surgeries, and he took a pay cut to remain with Cleveland in 2024. Chubb played in eight games, rushing for three touchdowns, before suffering a broken foot that cut his year short last season.
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Chubb, 29, averaged 5.3 yards per carry over his first six NFL seasons. He had a streak of four straight 1,000-yard seasons and ran for a career-best 1,525 yards in 2022 before suffering the knee injuries in the second game of the 2023 campaign. Though the Browns drafting two backs might have been a surprise, selecting their new running back of the future always seemed likely. Judkins was taken at No. 36 in the second round with a pick the Browns acquired in their first-round blockbuster trade with Jacksonville.
'Nick Chubb is a great back who's done a lot of great things here,' Judkins told Cleveland reporters before Friday's practice session. 'I'm looking forward to starting my own legacy, and I think the coaches will put me in a great position to do that.'
Judkins (5-foot-11, 221 pounds) is an explosive athlete who can run between the tackles. He had 45 rushing touchdowns over three seasons and capped his college career by scoring three times in Ohio State's national championship win over Notre Dame in January. Sampson (5-foot-8, 200 pounds) led the SEC with 1,491 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns last fall.
Judkins said he's fully focused on learning the playbook and refining his game rather than how he might eventually fit, but he added that he's 'an all-around player' who believes he's game-ready at just 21. Judkins said the message he received from Browns running backs coach Duce Staley ahead of rookie minicamp was 'to just go out there and execute — just be the guy they drafted.'
Ford played sparingly as a rookie in 2022, but he alternated between the feature back and a third-down role over the past two seasons. His decision to reduce his 2025 salary at least temporarily ensured his roster spot with the Browns, though Ford could go from atop the depth chart to a potential trade candidate if the rookies progress. The Browns signed fullback Troy Hairston to a futures contract and have two more fullbacks in their rookie minicamp, a sign that the offensive installation will include an emphasis on the power-run game that thrived with Chubb in coach Kevin Stefanski's first three seasons.
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The running back room is crowded. Pierre Strong Jr. is also back and under contract for one more season, though he is more of a special teams player. Sampson could end up competing with Ford and Strong for kick return duties and pass-down work, though the real competition won't start until the pads come on in training camp. Right now, Judkins and Sampson are sticking to introductions and basic installations.
'We obviously like (Judkins) and his skill set,' Stefanski said. 'I think (Sampson) was a player we really, really liked a lot throughout the process. So, I think it really just so happens that they're different in style, which I think is beneficial. I think when you're talking about the running back position and the quintessential change of pace (back), sometimes you can go from a speed back to a stronger back, or vice versa. So, I think it really did just happen that way. But we liked both of those guys a lot going into this draft process.'
RBs gettin' after it 💨@quinshon_ | @dylans21527 pic.twitter.com/tpCYBGJXXa
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) May 9, 2025
Stefanski has stressed the basics with the 47 players in rookie minicamp, a group that includes the team's seven draft picks, 13 undrafted rookie signees and a collection of tryout and first-year players who spent some of last season on the practice squad or at the bottom of the roster. For most of those 47, nothing is certain past the next few days.
For Judkins and Sampson, though, competition and opportunity await. The draft results say that Stefanski, Berry and the other folks in charge think the rookie runners are ready.
'We're gonna be able to push each other and get better,' Sampson said. 'Along with the older guys in the room, we're gonna learn from each other. I'm ready to just learn some more ball. Me and Quinshon, we'll have a good relationship, and we'll be able to push each other.'
(Top photo of Quinshon Judkins: Ken Blaze / Imagn Images