4 most unexpected Cleveland Browns stars from 2023

2. Jerome Ford, RB

When Nick Chubb suffered a knee injury in a Week 2 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, it was a devastating blow. The Browns offense had every intention of dialing up the pass more often in 2023 but that didn’t mean Chubb didn’t have a role. Instead, he was supposed to be utilized more in the passing game and they planned to prevent wearing him down early in the year.

Cleveland wanted to be able to pound the rock to close out games and Chubb is excellent in such a role. Without him, they turned to Jerome Ford who was an unknown after hardly touching the ball as a rookie. He remained the starter all year and while he wasn’t as impactful as Chubb, he had some great moments including a 69-yard touchdown run in Week 2 after taking over for Chubb.

He added another 69-yarder when they knocked off the Indianapolis Colts. In all, he had 813 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. He also proved to be a weapon in the passing game with 319 yards and five touchdowns on 44 receptions.

Maybe he wasn’t a superstar and there were games where he was neutralized. But overall, Ford gave the team all he had and finished with 1,132 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns. That’s more than anyone expected from him — even after Chubb went down.