The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Chubb is motivated after missing rushing title
Looking through the Browns’ record books for the last time a player won an NFL rushing champion will take a lot of page flipping.
That’s because it’s been a long time.
But in “Did You Know” fashion, the Browns have the most rushing titles in NFL history with 11.
It began 70 years ago when Marion Motley won the franchise’s first rushing title with 810 yards in 1950. Jim Brown took it to another level when — starting in 1957 — he won eight in nine seasons. Leroy Kelly won back-toback titles in 1967 and 1968.
It’s been a dry spell since then.
Nick Chubb came close to joining Motley, Brown and Kelly by nearly breaking that streak in 2019. He just missed.
The third-year running back is using that near-miss as motivation in 2020.
“(It did) not really bother me. Just more motivation,” Chubb told reporters during a Zoom meeting Aug. 11. “Trying to do it this year. Just working out, as I always do, working hard and running hard. I believe everything happens for a reason,
and you just keep working and striving and things will fall into place for you. That is my mindset.”
On the last day of the 2019 regular season, Chubb was denied the rushing title by the Titans’ Derrick Henry. At the start of that day, the NFL rushing leaders — Chubb and Christian McCaffrey of the Panthers — had a lead on the Titans’ Derrick Henry, who played against the Texans.
Henry had a monster game, as he rushed for 211 yards and scored three touchdowns against Houston. His 53-yard TD run in the fourth quarter secured Henry the title.
Henry finished the season with 1,570 yards, and Chubb had 1,453.
Chubb had a 92-yard lead on the field before the regular season’s last day, but he managed just 41 yards against the Bengals, while McCaffrey had an even more difficult time against the Saints with 26 yards.
Even with the disappointment of losing the rushing title, Chubb’s season was a breakout:
• The Pro Bowl player for the AFC had seven 100-yard games.
• Chubb’s best performance was at Baltimore on Sept. 29 with 165 yards on 20 carries and three touchdowns,
including one for 88 yards.
• He averaged 5.1 yards per attempt.
Speaking of rushing champions, the Browns have one on their roster in Willoughby South grad Kareem Hunt, who won the title as a rookie in 2017. Hunt, who had 1,327 yards that season, signed with the Browns after being cut by the Chiefs for disciplinary reasons. He had to sit out half of 2019 following an NFL suspension.
How carries are distributed between Hunt and Chubb could have an effect on Chubb’s production in 2020 compared to last season.
Chubb doesn’t seem too concerned. The pair trained together in the offseason in the Westlake area.
“Whatever happens, I trust in the coaching staff and I trust in the team,” said Chubb. “I know they will put us in the best position to win. However that looks, I am fine with it.
“No matter what is called, we have to make it work. We all have to buy in. We all have to trust in ourselves and trust in each other and just go out there and play.”
With Hunt’s talent, Chubb knows some carries and playing time must go his teammate’s way. All of
that excites him for 2020, and with good reason. As a running back tandem in a full season, Chubb and Hunt could measure up to the 1985 backfield of Kevin Mack and Earnest Byner. That season, each rushed for at least 1,000 yards.
“It is exciting for sure,” said Chubb. “Definitely because (Hunt) can do so many different things. It doesn’t have to be him running the ball.
“It can be catching it out of the slot. I think we have a lot of guys on this team and a lot of playmakers, and you can’t go wrong with who has the ball. Pick your poison.”