Kareem Hunt Will 'Always' Have Browns' Support, Says HC Freddie Kitchens

Cleveland Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens left no doubt about the franchise's level of commitment to running back Kareem Hunt, who will miss the first eight games of the 2019 season.

"Kareem's always going to have our support," Kitchens said Wednesday, per the Akron Beacon Journal's Nate Ulrich. "We're going to continue to support him, just like we do every player that we have, and again I'll reiterate that we want them to be a better person 50 years from now and still be able to sustain and be successful in life than just worrying about right now." 

The NFL suspended Hunt for a violation of the league's personal conduct policy after a video was released which showed him pushing and kicking a woman at a Cleveland hotel in February 2018.

TMZ Sports obtained the video and released it in November.

Shortly thereafter the Kansas City Chiefs released Hunt, and the NFL placed him on the commissioner's exempt list, which precluded him from returning to the field.

His status was unchanged when the Browns signed him to a one-year, $1.1 million deal in February, with the league handing down his suspension in March.

TMZ Sports shared video July 1 of Hunt speaking with police officers following an alleged altercation at a Cleveland bar. WKYC's Andrew Horansky spoke to the owner of the bar, who said the 2017 Pro Bowler had a "small argument with one of his friends," the significance of which was later exaggerated.

Browns general manager John Dorsey addressed the situation Wednesday and said the team had "reviewed the facts" and praised Hunt's work on and off the field, per Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot. Dorsey added he doesn't expect the NFL will levy further punishment in connection to the incident.