Browns GM Andrew Berry anticipating 'next time that Nick Chubb runs out of that tunnel'

Nick Chubb's agreement to a restructured contract seemed to signal a drop in confidence he'd return as the same star who has powered Cleveland's offense over the last five years.

On the other hand, the adjusted deal meant Chubb was no longer a cut candidate in order to clear salary cap space. Although Chubb now has to earn some of his previously guaranteed salary via his performance, it seems as if both parties are pleased with the outcome.

General manager Andrew Berry expressed gratitude for the collaboration of Chubb's representation when speaking with reporters Thursday.

"Yeah, I won't comment in detail on the contract, other than to say that I think that whenever you go through a situation like that, I think people think it's easy for a club, an agent, to be adversarial," Berry said. "And, you know, with Nick's situation, I really applaud Nick and then his reps, Todd France and A.J. Stevens, for being really collaborative partners and finding a solution that worked for everybody.

"You know, I think everybody in this room is happy that Nick is back as a Cleveland Brown and we're very optimistic that he's going to crush the rehab."

Chubb's significant knee injury suffered in Week 2 ended his 2023 campaign after less than two games. The Browns quickly learned how valuable he was to their operation, and were forced to rely on a pieced-together backfield comprised of second-year back Jerome Ford, speedster Pierre Strong and familiar face Kareem Hunt, who returned to the Browns following Chubb's injury.

Since then, Berry's group has acted as if it won't be caught shorthanded again, adding Nyheim Hines and D'Onta Foreman, stocking the depth chart with six running backs, including Chubb.

Despite expressing satisfaction with the