Nick Chubb Eyes New Browns Contract Ahead of Free Agency: 'I'd Like to Finish Here'

Running back Nick Chubb says it is "important" that he returns for an eighth season with the Cleveland Browns after his current contract expires this spring.

"I would say it's important. I started here. I'd like to finish here," Chubb said, per Dan Labbe of cleveland.com. "Cleveland just means a lot to me. Everything we've been through, ups and downs, but I'm proud to be drafted here."

The report comes two days after Chubb told Cleveland fans he was "a Brown for life" during a charity event, per Denise Polverine Manoloff of Cleveland Magazine.

Chubb, selected by the Browns in the second round of the 2018 draft, missed 21 straight regular-season games after suffering a severe knee injury in Week 2 of the 2023 campaign.

The incident marked the second potentially career-ending left knee injury of Chubb's career. He also suffered a serious injury to the same knee while playing for Georgia in 2015.

Chubb returned to the NFL field for the first time in over a year during the Browns' Week 7 loss to the Bengals. In seven starts since, he has recorded 93 carries for 291 yards and three touchdowns, adding five catches and a receiving touchdown.

He is averaging 3.1 yards per carry, which would mark a full-season career-low and a significant departure from the 5.0 yards per attempt he recorded during his last full season in 2022.

The Browns meanwhile head into Week 15 ranked 30th in the NFL in rushing offense. That lack of offense on the ground, combined with the team's struggles under center, led to Cleveland being eliminated from playoff contention in Week 14.

Chubb played the 2024 season on a reworked deal with the Browns, which converted most of his original $11.75 base salary into incentives hinging on on offensive categories including playing time, receptions, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. The Browns could consider offering Chubb a similarly incentive-laden contract in order to bring him back on a lower-risk deal in 2025.