Cleveland Browns: Top-10 newest Browns of 2018
By Shane Carter
6. Nick Chubb
Nick Chubb was a thousand-yard rusher!.. then he wasn’t… then he was again!.. until he wasn’t. Despite Nick Chubb finishing just shy of the century mark, he became a fan favorite and one of the best rookies of 2018. Not just in Cleveland.
Nick Chubb was used sparingly in the first six games of the season, behind Carlos Hyde. Once Hyde was traded to Jacksonville, he became the lead Dawg, getting 996 yards and eight touchdowns on only 196 rushing attempts.
More. 15 best running backs of all-time. light
At Georgia, Chubb was never really the receiver. It was always Sony Michel that would catch passes out of the backfield. As a Brown, he was used more than any season that he had in college with 20 catches for 149 yards (7.45 yards per reception) and a pair of touchdowns.
Nick Chubb was definitely a first round talent but a deep running back class pushed him to just outside the first. Other teams losses is Cleveland’s gain. Chubb was one of the teams Pro Bowl alternate’s and now the Browns have what looks like their first franchise running back in a long time.
5. Denzel Ward
I’m not going to sugarcoat this. Denzel Ward was my favorite draft pick the Browns made. All offseason people lobbied for either Bradley Chubb or Saquon Barkley or even Baker Mayfield with the fourth overall pick. Many Browns fans are also Buckeye fans and they needed a franchise corner. Man did they get one.
Denzel Ward was a Pro Bowl corner as a rookie and one of the highest overall vote-getters in the league! For 2018, he had three interceptions, 11 pass breakups and five tackles for a loss, which is unheard of for a corner!
Ward was obviously not the most talked about rookie on the team but he might have been the best defensive rookie in the league. He’s going to bring havoc to the AFC North for years to come.