Jim Brown Still Sees Nothing Outstanding in Cleveland Browns RB Trent Richardson
By all accounts, Cleveland Browns running back Trent Richardson is making an excellent first impression with his new team. In rookie minicamps and OTAs, Richardson has proven to be physically imposing and fast. In other words, he’s exactly as advertised.
However, none of that has changed Jim Brown’s mind. The legendary running back said before the draft that Richardson was nothing more than “ordinary,” an opinion that very few people shared. And now that he’s had time to think those comments over, they haven’t changed one bit.
In an interview with ESPNCleveland.com, Brown had more to say regarding the Browns’ new back.
"“When you think of greatness and the great backs, they all had some individual traits that you can identify – quickness, balance, power, speed,” Brown said. “I think the kid [Richardson] is a good working back, and if you’ve got everything else around him he can play his role. But when it comes to outstanding, I don’t see anything outstanding about him. It’s not said in a cruel manner. He’s very efficient, and that’s what you want.”"
It’s obviously speculation to wonder whether Brown’s opinion has anything to do with him being let go from his position as an executive advisor by president Mike Holmgren two years ago. But it’s also obvious that Brown is not Holmgren’s biggest fan, and he hasn’t exactly been hiding his recent feelings for the organization.
Is this really just a case of him being bitter, or does Jim Brown really think that Trent Richardson is nothing more than ordinary?