The NFL preseason is over and the regular season is less than two weeks away, which means it’s time for fantasy football drafts. Many NFL fans are cramming ahead of their drafts, which means checking in on the various injuries around the league. What’s the latest on Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb, and should you draft him?
The Latest on Nick Chubb’s Health
Chubb was never expected to be available for Week 1 after suffering a gruesome knee injury last September. The Browns kept Chubb on the reserve/PUP list, meaning he’ll miss at least the first four games of the regular season.
Cleveland will allow the veteran running back to ramp up before activating him later this season. Jerome Ford will be Cleveland’s RB1 while Chubb is sidelined. The Browns also kept Pierre Strong Jr. on their roster, while they’re expected to re-sign D’Onta Foreman after cutting him on Tuesday.
As Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noted, Chubb needs to be active for 12 games this year to collect a $225,000 roster bonus.
Nick Chubb’s Fantasy Outlook
Chubb’s rehab process has gone well, and we’ve all seen the video of him squatting a small house. From 2020-22, 42 running backs carried the rock at least 300 times. Chubb had as good of a case as any of them to be considered the top rusher over that stretch (minimum 300 carries):
- First in yards per carry (5.3)
- Second in rushing yards per game (89.6)
- Third in rushing touchdowns per game (0.7)
The former All-Pro only costs you an eighth-round pick right now, and Cleveland closes the fantasy season with three straight opponents (Kansas City, Cincinnati, and Miami) that they will look to dominate in the time of possession battle.
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Ford profiles as the leader of this backfield for the first half of the season, and the two-round discount from Chubb is interesting for managers implementing a zero-RB build that will overemphasize front-end production.
If the Browns dial back the pass rate that they posted under Joe Flacco down the stretch of last season, their RB1 is a good bet to post RB2 numbers. Taking either Ford or Chubb is a viable strategy, and taking both is also on the table.