Browns 2024 season: Surprising Jerome Ford, Nick Chubb data from last year

Browns roster feels incomplete without Nick Chubb while Jerome Ford was surprisingly on the right side of things

Trying to wrap our hearts around RB Nick Chubb most likely being done with the Cleveland Browns is tough. Rustylou from our comment section was far from alone in having an emotional response to GM Andrew Berry’s comments:

Fans, players and media were inspired by Chubb.

Logically, Chubb’s decline on the field was pretty obvious last year. That doesn’t mean he won’t bounce back with an offseason to get ready instead of trying to get healthy, but his 3.3 yards per carry average is concerning.

Replacing Chubb with Jerome Ford wasn’t the answer either for Cleveland. A solid 813 yards in 2023 dropped to 565 last year as ankle injuries seemed to pile up. The Browns didn’t trust Ford, going into the final year of his contract, as they drafted Quinshon Judkins in the second round and Dylan Sampson in the fourth to prepare for Ford’s departure.

Despite seeing all of that play out on the field last year, this chart of forced missed tackles and yards after contact was close to shocking, with Chubb in the worst quadrant and Ford in the best:

Chubb used to be dominant on charts like this:

It remains to be seen whether either Chubb or Ford will be primary backs in 2025, but their 2024 results noted above lean to Ford being more likely than Chubb.

Which is more surprising to you: How high Ford is or how low Chubb is from last year?