well, it's worth a shot



Mary Kay Cabot
@MaryKayCabot
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1m
Updated: #Browns sign Kareem Hunt to a one-year deal worth up to $4 million to help replace Nick Chubb

GOOD. And another team friendly inking by Hunt.

Welcome back. Expectations are low based on his performance last year.

The signing makes sense given the circumstances, however.

So we could’ve kept him the entire time.

I would have preferred James Robinson. But, I'll take it.

A good thing because of familiarity. He is coming back to his last home.

He will be used in a running back by committee.

He is a good pass receiver and blocker.

He is no longer a bell cow type back. But he will fit into a role for the offense.

no longer a bell cow back? why? because he's a whopping 4 months older than chubb, he had one off year, the year before averaged 5ypc. I think he had some lingering thing last year that reduced his effectiveness. I think he will be fine

Great deal for Hunt and the Browns.

What should help Watson (read: reduce whatever excuse he has left) is Kareem being a good catcher and able to easily catch dump off passes and turn them into big gains.

Good signing. Glad to have Hunt back.

We gonna Funt on dem hoes.

Doesn't have quite the same ring. But I'm glad he's back.

we have to strictly use him in passing situations. Don't let him wear himself out in the box or getting the tough yards. Let him pass block and receive with fresh legs

Good news. Now we need a LT that can at least slow down a pass rusher.

This is how he worked his way into our offense the first time, and probably would work well again. I'm really hoping last year was the result of some sort of nagging injury, and he's able to work up to being "the guy".

He might have a resurgence with more carries and catches. He’ll probably play hungry now that he’s experienced a 2nd dry spell. And he’s a very stabilizing presence for the locker room, which we desperately need right now. This makes a lot of sense to me. We’re not replacing Chubb with one back no matter what. I like this move a lot. Hell, he could probably be ready to go this Sunday assuming he’s in shape.

This is gonna be the feel-good story of the year.

Hunt comes back as an old re-tread because his best buddy and Cleveland hero goes down. With expectations for him somewhere between a washed-up has been and a decoy, he not only sets records for Cleveland running backs but wins the rushing title enroute to their first Superbowl appearance. Chub, after successful full-knee replacement watches from the sidelines as Cleveland wins a nail-biter over the Philadelphia Eagles 27-24.

D-hop with the last second field goal from the 55 to ice it.

Write it down, boys.

The reason why he was not resigned before was they felt he was slowing down.

He has not been a lead runner since he was in KC.

Not a problem to use him in combination with others.

He is coming in 10 lbs lighter than last season

Might just get his juice back

Last season was a bad season

players have bad seasons

lets hope this is a Dang bro ! look at you go !

Season !!

Good news.

He has some fire in him. I cant think of any current O player with the fire of Hunt. Glad he is back hope it rubs off.

He does have some edge, but more importantly will he wear 27?

Hopefully, on Dehsuan.

let's refrain from using the word rub with DeShaun lol

That's my feeling... singing makes sense... he can get up to speed faster than any other available back....

It would be awesome if Kareem dedicated this season to Nick Chubb.

Probably, but it will take a while to get in to game shape. If he is to take over the lead back role, it will probably be after the bye...and if Ford plays well he will be the lead back. That said, no matter who is called lead back, carries between the two will probably be a somewhat equal split as the season moves on.

Aw geez.....lol

I saw the same thing everyone else did last year, but he is not old, and he doesn’t have that much mileage on him. He led the league in rushing once. And he has a Joe Cribbs-level love for the Browns.

I am usually very optimistic, but this signing has me feeling a bit cautious. There are teams out there that could use a solid backup and $4 M isn't a lot, so it surprises me he wasn't signed by anyone prior to this. I am not saying he has the same ability, or similar attitudes, but his signing taking this long, reminds me of the 2 times we signed Clowney. It just concerns me why he was still available.

I hope my concerns are unfounded.

I knew that is what Berry was going to do. Welcome back Kareem!

I think we signed him to give the fans a new hero once Chubb went down. We needed something to rally around ... JMO, but they're going to use Kareem as a battle cry more than actual production

I don't think anyone is paying a backup that kind of jack. Zeke signed for a shared role in New England for the same 4M, that's about as close as you'll get, and basically the same thing we're seeing here. (Zeke is 12 - 42 with a fumble btw)

Hunt did exactly what I would do if I was a RB in the league, and I think he was always going to be the first signing after a team lost a marquee starter.

I'm not saying that means he's in tip-top shape, just saying that him still sitting was about 80% economics and 20 everything else.

In context, if a player is the guy you are missing, why not $4m? Would we pay $16 million in salary (Nick's 12 & Hunt's 4) to have Nick back right now? The NFL undervalues RBs so why is it a big deal if Nick goes down? Apparently, listening to sports media, RBs aren't worth it so just plug someone in. I watched what appeared to be Hunt missing open holes last year and seemed slower. I will say not many fights for yards like Hunt does. Hopefully it pans out.

I figured Hunt would be used sparingly today. I hope to see him get more carries next week. I still think he’s the best rB on the roster not named Chubb.

I think Ford will take on a bigger load as the season progresses…

Definitely got his feet wet today. We’re gonna need him against the ravens big time IMO

we need him out of the backfield and to spell Ford, jus like he did today

I agree. The kid is good. Some fans haven't figured it out yet, but Hunt is here as the change of pace guy.

We drafted Ford to be the lead guy at some point. The point is now and he has played well. He doesn't deserve to lose reps to Hunt as lead back. At least not from what I have seen.

Ford is not a featured back. He's a decent backup

What says that? I don't think the stats do

Today, no. But he's taken steps in each game this year. His slow and steady progress is nice to watch.

Ford made a really nice move on his TD catch. Nice nuanced route

Our OL hasn't played very well. Ford's been able to turn negative plays into positive plays multiple times. There were times when he was navigating traffic at or behind the LOS that I thought he looked quite Chubb-like. I don't think he has the pure power of Chubb, but he's done rather well, imo.

I’m truly sorry about Chubb guys. That just sucks. I still think you guys can make the playoffs. Your defense is looking tough.

I'm not sure why anyone thinks this FO would sign a FA RB to a four million dollar contract to spell a guy who is playing at a fraction of that cost. If all they were looking for was a utility back to spell the starter they could have found a much cheaper option to play that role.

Ford has 160 yards with a 3.8 YPC and 50% of his yards to date have come on one play. Remove that one play... he's basically averaging what he did last year 2.25 YPC.

Meanwhile, Chubb was averaging 6.1 YPC with the same OL and a long of 20.

How many NFL RB numbers compare to Nick Chubb?

lol, like zero

Most $4 mill backups I would agree, but I think Hunt brings a "reckless abandon" to this team. Just how hard he runs and yesterday when he hurdled tacklers, I think it brings some aggressiveness energy and enthusiasm to the offense.


Time will tell if it was a smart move, but to me he brought something beyond just his carries yesterday.

Just my opinion, and I am certainly no expert. I was even of the opinion before we signed him that Hunt had lost a step, hopefully it turns out to be a wise addition.

I don't really disagree with you to a point. I just think to bring reckless abandon to a team you must do it on the field. That's why I don't think they just shelled out $4 mil. for a backup to Ford.

Well, the good news is the contract is really 1.5 million. That's a good deal for us. I think it was an attitude signing more than anything, so I agree

Also, a mentor signing since Ford is a young player and just lost Chubb. His experience is needed since we lost Chubb's experience. I am not sure why Hunt is a debate. It was a good pick up and we were lucky he was still available. He produced yesterday with less than 1 week of preparation.

The debate is how large his role is intended to be.

FWIW, I don't really buy the story that Hunt has lost a step. He definitely had a down year last season and looked sluggish, but IMO he's not old enough and doesn't have enough miles on him to be breaking down like that. He had the monster rookie year, but then didn't play a full season after that (suspension). It took him a couple seasons here to get up to heavier usage as he's always been the backup.

He's not 30 yet, and he hasn't even gone over 1k carries for his pro career.


I think he was dinged or something last year that was making him look bad.

good points

When opposing defensive players look at our RB roster and see Ford… it raises no eyebrows. He hasn’t earned respect or fear. Not saying he won’t, but right now opposing LB’rs aren’t worried about being gashed by Ford. When those same defensive players see Hunt on the field… they have to have a different level of respect. He’s earned it. They know if they mess up he can gash them.
Having Hunt in our stable of backs brought back some level of legitimacy, respect, and fear that was lost when Chubb went down.
They psychological aspect has to be considered.

Welcome to the board! Thank you, we can only hope. Nice W yesterday. We have seen that type of collapse before from the D coordinator you went up against.

I'm fine with defensive players sleeping on Ford and giving him easy TDs. Just saying.

How do you remove a run?

Plus , he had a lot of garbage-time carries versus Cinci, when they knew we’d be running. The Yards per rush average is somewhat misleading. He’s made some plays for us, say my eyeballs

you remove the outlier on each side (good and bad) to get a better representation of his expected output.

He is playing like a 2.25 ypc back.

Hunt will be good for us. His personality is good for a team

That's one way of looking at it. Your sample size isn't very big.

He's also a TD a game RB so far. Caught 5 for 58.

Ford was also playing against teams known for their defense. Plus, we haven't really had a ton of time where we've been primarily game planning to fit his skill set. Came in after Chubb went down in week two, then had a short week after the Monday night game.

Hunt had a 6 carry for 9 yard game, 4 for 6 yards game, and 7 for 8 yards game last year. Was he playing like a sub-2 yard per carry back? Is he "not a featured back?"

I think it's much too soon to say whether Ford is or is not a featured back.

Hunt is in my top 5 players since the return. Joe t, Nick Chubb, Myles Garret, Hunt, Teller. Bitonio is 6th.

I love that Hunt wants to be here and rep his hometown.