BEREA, Ohio — Following the Nov. 1 trade deadline for the NFL, many on the Cleveland Browns are thankful running back Kareem Hunt stayed to contribute to the gridiron, including partner-in-crime running back Nick Chubb.
"Kareem is one of my best friends, a great teammate here and a great player for this team," said Chubb during media availability on Wednesday afternoon. "Having him back is everything to me and it is everything to everyone here."
During the offseason, Hunt expressed his desire to sign an extension with the Browns. However, that was not able to be finalized. During the negotiation process, he sat out of practice drills during training camp. Even though he might not have finalized a deal, the end goal remains the same for Hunt—help his team win.
The performance of the Chubb-Hunt duo was something fans looked forward to heading into this season, and rightfully so. Together, Hunt and Chubb had 152 rushing yards in their 32-13 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals on Halloween night.
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Hunt's efforts didn't come without difficulties. At the time, the running back didn't know what his future with the team held as the Browns fielded trade inquiries for him ahead of the deadline. It wasn't easy to tell on the field, but that was certainly weighing on him during the game.
"I think just the uncertainty of not knowing what's going to happen really got to him," said Chubb about Hunt and his emotions surrounding the potential trade. "It will work out for us, because he's still here. That's behind us now."
Together, the pair have over 1,100 rushing yards combined over the last nine weeks of the regular season. The value Hunt brings to the team is something head coach Kevin Stefanski says has not changed due to his status on the roster.
"It really does not affect me or us in any way," said Stefanski. "Kareem is a big part of what we do. He always has been and always will be. He plays hard. There are going to be opportunities for him. In relation to the trade deadline or anything like that, it doesn't really affect me."
And that's something fans—and Chubb—will be grateful to see as the season continues.
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