DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Is Nick Chubb a factor back.

Ron Jaworski used to have a show on Espn where he would document the skill sets of the top running backs and how their play would effect the whole game. (Dorsey Levins, Terrelle Davis, it was a while ago.)

There would be breakdowns of how in certain situations the ability of a team having a "factor back" on their team made the difference for all of the rest of the players on the field.

It's the ability to catch, the ability to read defenses, the ability to know certain things, and to block and to impact the game in a way that demands the other team, the whole other team have to account for you.

A player can be a pretty good RB, even a really good rb and not be a factor back, (maybe Benard in Cinncinnati, is not),
(Ezekiel Elliot, in Dallas, probably is).

Chubb is in his first year, maybe he's not there yet, maybe he already is, maybe he works better in a tandem with someone else to be named later?

Is Nick Chubb a factor back?

What do you think?

I’d say definitely. He’s been just as impactful as Barkley since he’s become the starter. He’s actually better statistically considering he hasn’t started every game

I used to love that show. One of the few bright spots on ESPN pre-internet age. (Until Merril Hoge opened his Steeler biased mouth lol).

I believe Nick Chubb IS A FACTOR BACK. He has the catch of the year by a RB (1st Bengals game), and has great Yards After Contact (led the league last week, not sure if it changed since the game) which to me is the main thing to really judge an RB by. Any decent RB can run through huge holds opened by the line.

Also you have to consider value. We got him for a 2nd round pick, and there's no a single RB not drafted in the top 5 OVERALL that I'd take over him.

However, one caution is that RBs are always the most underrated and overrated player on the field IMO.

When a QB and/or O-line stinks, an RB doesn't do much. Even great ones. See: Adrian Peterson for years in Minnesota or right now in WASH after Smith went down).

It's no coincidence that we always have our best RB years the same time we have our best QB/O-line years.

Just look at 2014 for us. We had Terrence West, Isaiah Crowell and Ben Tate and our running game was tearing up the league.

Then Alex Mack broke his leg and Johnny Manziel came in and I think they only had 1 game over 100 yards COMBINED for the rest of the year.

Nick Chubb will have a great career but I don't believe any RB is good enough to carry a team on their own.

Some have come close like Faulk, Lynch, Peterson, but even they need the good QB play.

Absolutely! He is Baker's best buddy ... Read below. *L*

Actually, I think the Jury's still out.

Chubb has been a strong runner, a very good receiver, and a very good blocker since becoming the starter. He has made huge plays. He has continued to improve in all phases of his game. Any time he touches the ball, there is a legitimate expectation that he could take it all the way. His pass blocking, which was a concern early on, (and mainly to one blown block) has become very good. He has scored TDs. (8 rush and 2 pass, in 9 starts+, compared to 10 rush and 4 receiving by Barkley)

Let's look at explosive plays. The leader as far as 20+ yard rushes is Barkley. He has 14 in 244 touches. Chubb is tied for 2nd in the NFL with 11. (though in far fewer carries)

No matter how you look at it, Chubb is a factor. He is playing with a QB who spreads the ball around, so his targets in the pass game are not likely to be as high as Barkley's have been this year. I think that Duke is just as good a receiver as Barkley, and his touches in the pass game have been way down this year. It's a function of the offense, and not an indictment on his ability.

Is Nick Chubb a factor back? You bet.

I think he's a top 10 back in the league right now. He's got the ability to churn out tough yards, bust long TDs, catch the ball, etc. He's got everything.

What RBs would we prefer to Chubb right now?

Elliott
Bell (could be argued)
Gurley
Kamara (could be argued)
McCaffrey ?
Barkley

Yes.

Chubb has 11 runs of 20+ yards in 183 carries. He is tied with Gurley (256 carries) and Elliot. (304 carries)

Barkley leads the league with 14 runs of 20+ yards in 244 carries.

I think that it can be convincingly argued that Chubb is the more explosive back.

Nick Chubb is a dream RB for any OC ... All of the above is all very good stuff, but he is a RB that you can stay on schedule with, putting you in 3rd and manageable down and distance.

Oh, and he protects the ball ... Knocking on wood for my utterance.

I thought that he would be the better value in the Draft @RB, over spending a First pick on Barkley, and now we know that we would not have had Baker too.

Sometimes a plan works to perfection

Good call Fla ... u LOVED him pre-draft ...

He’s also a GREAT KID ... real easy to root for guys like him and Bake (love his heart and hopefully he matures ... ... ) ...

Good Dude from what i’ve seen and heard ...

Good call dawg ...

He has very good burst, elusiveness, and power. 5.3 yards per carry behind an interior line that is known for its pass blocking, not so much for getting a push in the run game. Chubb's averaging the most yards per carry after contact in the league. 0 fumbles. He catches the ball well enough out of the backfield where defenses still have to respect that aspect of his game.

Add it all up and yes, he's a factor back.

I was all over Nick pre-draft.


I see a lot of Ga games living here 11 miles north of the Ga state line. My only concern with his knee health, but these days, it was a mild concern.


I was concerned about his speed and cutting ability.



Concerns erased.

I would also add that his patience and vision are really top shelf also. He doesn't just blast his way into the backs of his OL ..... he can be patient, and see the hole developing ... and then take advantage of it. He has great burst once he sees the hole developing. He is hard to bring down, and gains most of his yards after contact. Factor back? Yeah, I'd say so.

I thought the thread title was a rhetorical question.

I don't think so.

Yes, but I think the Browns have done a tremendous job of taking good care of him.

He's gone 20+ carries just 4 times, half of those right at the 20 mark.

He's averaging 5.3 yards a carry, which yes, is probably inflated due to several unbelievably long runs, but the numbers don't lie, and as someone in here has already mentioned, he's leading the league in yards after contact, which is going to bode well for when this team starts building leads.

He's not flashy like Barkley or Zeke, but I think he should be our guy for next season for sure.

Odd comment.

Was there a possibility that he wasn't?

I think with running backs, NFL teams are always looking.

You don't need to find guys in the first round. The shelf life is short, so I think there is a constant temptation to find the next guy. I get that he's a rookie, but if things didn't work out, I think the Browns would have easily started to look again.

I love when people say this. Breaking long runs IS what gives you a big average. That's how Barkley gets his, that's how Bell gets his.


So saying they are "inflated" is a bogus premise

I don’t usually get into college evaluations. I instead go with people I trust to do the evaluations. Those people were wrong imo on Chubb. He to me is a factor back.

j/c:

I was one of those that were wrong. I had him ranked 7th in the RB rankings. That's a pretty good ranking, but he is better than that.

Chubb is faster and more elusive than my evaluation claimed. My apologies, Mr. Chubb. You have done a great job this year and I have no problem admitting my evaluation was wrong.

Yeah, I know. When I said people I meant you. lol. I didn’t want to call you out. You imo tend to be right on these things more often than not. Being wrong is a good thing this time.

Yep, I was wrong.

Agree with everything Bone just said.

I'm not sure I'd put Chubb in the 'factor RB' bracket just yet - but it really only depends on how high you set the bar. My bar is very high for the definition that was provided. I think with a full season and with a bigger contribution as a pass catching RB Chubb will be there. We are extraordinarily lucky to have him and Baker and Ward all from the same draft class …. it's almost unbelievable.

I agree on Chubb ... he's way more elusive than I imagined. He's a complete back

I'm not sure I had Chubb that high :facepalm:

I completely whiffed on him. I never thought he would ever get close to his pre-injury form, but he's proving me wrong every game

I just hope he continues making me eat my shoe.

I agree, that's why its called an...get this... AVERAGE lol. its not what you typically get each run, its what your average of ALL your runs are. lol

it's like when Jamal Lewis had like 300 yards rushing and Butch said something like "Yeah, take away those 3 long TD runs of 70 yards and it's respectable:"

j/c

What I saw in Chubb was that after his initial comeback from the knee injury, he was certainly lacking some speed and those elusive abilities we see now. Yet, the further removed he was from the injury, the stronger, faster and more elusive he became. The lack of another injury and his increase in ability gave me a good feeling about drafting him.

Nothing can take away from his YPC and it ranks with the best backs in the league. When you add in his yards after contact, it makes him one of the strongest backs in the league as well. His pass catching ability is a work in progress but shows promise. It's something he wasn't asked to do at Georgia.

Oh, yeah...I remember- the 'good ol' days'-

Ya on draft day, I couldn't understand why they didn't draft what's his name. What IS his name? The guy had a bad reputation or somewhat, but looked like the far away better runner.

Chubb must have been injured because in college I don't remember seeing him do anything except fall into the hands of the tackler.

Admit, since joining the Browns, he has done some things you like to see out of a runningback.

My question is, is this a large enough sample,

Browns fan here, always worried if something good is happening that they're going to take it away somehow.

who Darrius Guice?

https://brownswire.usatoday.com/2018/12/28/nick-chubb-is-pffs-highest-graded-rb-in-2018/

PFF is always on top of this kinda stuff. Yet Barkley is the front runner to win Rookie of the Year LOL He's not even the best at his position let alone the draft.

The New York market has everything to do with that.

ha that's exactly what i told my brother when talking about ROTY, i said it'll be Baker because he's a QB, he said everyone thinks Barkley, I was like dude isn't even the best RB from the draft