Nick Chubb wore a game face at his first media availability since his knee injury in September. (TheLandOnDemand)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
For an OTA in early June, it was quite a day for the Browns.
Before practice, the Browns announced the long-anticipated contract extensions for GM Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski. They represent a watershed in the Haslam Family Ownership era.
After practice, Nick Chubb made his first public comments since suffering that severe left knee injury in Pittsburgh on September 18 that resulted in two surgeries and changed his career forever.
Although Chubb was reserved and non-committal to a timetable to be back on the field, the fact the reticent running back was willing to suffer through a Q&A session is an encouraging sign in his arduous recovery.
Partnership renewed
Owner Jimmy Haslam said in March that contract extensions for Berry and Stefanski were imminent. They were finalized this week.
Length of the extensions were not disclosed. The typical extensions for executives and coaches are 2-3 years. Each was in the final year of his original 5-year deal. So if it’s three years, the partnership would extend through the 2027 season.
“They are two of the brightest people we know, and selfless people who only care about what is best for the Cleveland Browns,” the Haslams said in a prepared statement. “We are thrilled that Kevin and Andrew will remain with the team for the future.”
In their four-year partnership as GM and coach, which started in 2020, the Browns are 38-32 (counting three post-season games). The .543 win percentage is the highest over four years since 1986-89.
Stefanski has earned two NFL coach-of-the-year awards and Berry has drawn praise for assembling the franchise’s strongest roster of the expansion era despite constraints caused by the trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Berry, 37, for the fifth year in a row is the youngest GM in the NFL. Stefanski, 42, is the ninth-youngest head coach.
They’re the first GM-coach tandem under the Haslam ownership to receive a second contract, much less survive beyond two years.
If they reach the expected length of these extensions, they will have served eight years together, matching the partnership of GM Harold Sauerbrei and coach Blanton Collier as the second-longest football regime in Browns history. Only founding coach Paul Brown, who was his own GM, served longer (17 years).
The Berry-Stefanski duo trails the 1980s-era duo of GM Ernie Accorsi and coach Marty Schottenheimer in record. The Browns were 46-31 in 4 ½ seasons under their leadership. That included three division titles, one wild-card appearance, and two losses in the AFC Championship Game.
“We have work to do,” Stefanski said. “Until you’ve got that final one checked off, you haven’t done it. And that’s for us. As you know, there’s one goal for every football team, every franchise, and that’s where we will keep our sights. Obviously, in between, you try to win some ball games and do right by the community and those type of things. But we and every – all 32 clubs -- we have one thing in mind.”
It should be noted that the brains behind the Berry-Stefanski partnership was Paul DePodesta, chief strategy officer. He led the search for a coach and GM after the John Dorsey regime blew up. It is believed that DePodesta also received a contract extension to coincide with Berry and Stefanski.
In March, when he leaked news of the imminent extensions, Haslam alluded to DePodesta and said, “The three of them work together extremely well. And so that makes our job much easier.”
Mr. Chubb speaks
Chubb had not spoken publicly since the Wednesday before the fateful Monday Night Football game in Pittsburgh on September 18.
He said the low hit to his left knee by Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was “part of the game … I don’t think it was a dirty hit at all.” Fitzpatrick apologized to Chubb on the field, but Chubb said he hasn't heard from him since that night.
Chubb described the immediate aftermath of the injury “a blurry two weeks,” and conceded it took him a while to recover mentally from the second major injury to his left knee since 2015.
“I was down mentally for a while,” he said. “When you get hurt, I mean, it’s one thing. When you get hurt again, and you already know what you got to go through the entire process – surgery, rehab, it’s a nonstop battle every day. So my team did a great job being there for me. I was around the building for them and they did a great job. Made the playoffs, had a great run.”
Chubb inspired the team throughout the year by working hard in his rehab every day. The team dedicated the season to him. When it was poised to clinch a playoff spot in Game 16 in a Thursday night home game against the Jets, Chubb revved up the crowd and team by performing the celebratory guitar smash on the field in pre-game.
“It meant a lot,” Chubb said. “We all had to do our part in that Thursday night game. I did my part, and the guys did the rest.”
As to the future, Chubb was careful not to overstate expectations of his return.
“I like where I’m at,” he said. “I’m where I need to be. I would say that, you know, the biggest thing for me is getting better every day.”
The experience of coming back from his injury at Georgia, which included a dislocated knee and tears of three of the four knee ligaments, has helped him get through this recovery.
“I would say it does help just knowing how to attack it mentally and knowing, I might not be at a certain point where through the rehab process that I want to be, but I know, taking it day by day and the weeks add up and the months add up, and eventually I’ll get to where I want to be,” he said.
Chubb’s mental outlook improved once he was able to begin running on ground in April. He said only recently, however, has he been able to move “really well.”
He said he never thought about retiring and considered it “a blessing” that Berry redid the final year of his contract, including a 2 million guarantee.
“They could have cut me dry and left me hanging, right? But they did a great job. You know, I want to be here in Cleveland. They know that. So, we came to a great point,” Chubb said.
As to the future, Chubb said, “I’m not looking too far ahead. I’m just taking it day by day. You know, it’s Wednesday, and I had to get better today on Wednesday. That’s my whole mindset.”