Cleveland Browns: 3 things to watch for heading into training camp

2. Running back room

The Browns running back room is going to be extremely interesting to see how it shakes out. There’s a ton of talent in that room, and the Browns will not have enough roster spots to keep all 5-main players.

With Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, rookie Jerome Ford, Demetric Felton and D’Ernest Johnson, there is an abundance of talent that will create an intense competition throughout training camp. In addition to those five players, the Browns also have John Kelly Jr. on the roster.

Kareem Hunt, who’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the 2022 season, is interested in staying in Cleveland long-term, as he expressed during his youth football camp in late June.

However, as we know the NFL is a strict business and it takes two to tango in any situation. Andrew Berry and the front office seem comfortable waiting to make a decision and not giving Kareem Hunt an extension this offseason (something that Hunt was hoping for) when Nick Chubb is slated to have a $14.85M cap hit in 2023.

Many may assume Hunt would be a prime trade candidate prior to this season if the team is unwilling to extend him, so the Browns could get something in return for him before he hits the open market in 2023.

Actually, the vibe I’ve gotten is that it’s unlikely the Browns will move Hunt in the near future, and the team is looking forward to having Hunt contribute to the team and help them win games in 2022, and then making a decision after the season on a possible extension for Kareem.

Demetric Felton is a player who flashed at times when given opportunities last season, and someone who is likely to have an increased role in the offense, and on special teams in 2022.

This leaves us with Cincinnati Bearcats fifth-round pick Jerome Ford and D’Ernest Johnson. It will likely be a dogfight for one of these players to make the final roster, and the edge has to go to rookie Jerome Ford. It is not often teams will cut their drafted rookies before the start of the season.

Johnson is a player who has always stepped up for Cleveland when needed. Unfortunately, the Browns are unable to keep all of the players on their roster, so the most likely situation seems to be a late preseason trade.

It would make a lot of sense for Cleveland to trade Johnson to a running back needy team (possibly due to injury) for a late-round pick.

But anything can happen when there’s an open competition in training camp, so this is definitely something to keep an eye on.