Fired Browns Coach Could Reunite Soon With Baker Mayfield

Former Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt could be coaching Mayfield once again in Tampa Bay.

With the Tampa Bay Buccaneers losing offensive coordinator Dave Canales to the Carolina Panthers for their head coaching vacancy, the Bucs are looking for a new offensive coordinator to work with starting quarterback Baker Mayfield.

The Buccaneers will likely get many offensive coordinator candidates who want to work with Mayfield and those weapons at the skill spots. However, there’s one candidate that Mayfield is familiar with and could help continue his development.

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Browns running backs: Cap hits, free agents and big decisions on Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The running back position has been one of the Browns’ most stable positions since the arrival of Kevin Stefanski in 2020. He inherited a running back room featuring Nick Chubb, who nearly won the rushing title in 2019, and Kareem Hunt, who won it his rookie season.

The two formed a dynamic duo for the Browns’ offense, but now the Browns enter an offseason where it feels like the room is starting to change. Chubb is trying to come back from injury and Hunt, who it seemed was gone a year ago, is once again a free agent.

We continue our look at the Browns roster situation position-by-position, starting with contracts and big decisions on the horizon.

Monday, it was quarterbacks. Today we move to the backfield, starting with what the Browns will do with one of their most beloved players.

Salary data is taken from Over the Cap and Spotrac.

Players under contract
Nick Chubb (through 2024)

2024 cap hit: $15.825 million

Jerome Ford (through 2025)

2024 cap hit: $1,065,537

Pierre Strong Jr. (through 2025)

2024 cap hit: $985,000

Big decisions

How to handle Chubb’s contra

Browns GM Andrew Berry made it clear last Monday he didn’t plan on moving on from Chubb after his season ended in Week 2 following a gruesome knee injury.

“Nobody wants to see that carry in Pittsburgh be the last time he carries the ball for the Cleveland Browns,” Berry said. “And obviously there are things that we’ll have to work through … We obviously will work to keep him on the team.”

The issue isn’t with Chubb or even doubting his ability to come back — if anyone can, it’s him. The issue is the contract. He’s eating up nearly $16 million of cap space, a big number for a healthy running back, and the Browns could save $11.825 million if they released him.

Let’s not even go there. Chubb is more than just a cap figure to this team. He’s a beloved teammate and represents everything the Browns want from their players. Getting Chubb back on the field carrying the football for the Browns is a priority.

The question is how to do it.

“Obviously there are things that we’ll have to work through …” Berry said, “We obviously will work to keep him on the team.”

The Browns will have to come up with a way to restructure Chubb’s contract to keep him around for this season and beyond. They likely would have had to do it anyway this offseason, the injury and his return from it simply adds a sense of urgency to make it work.

The Browns handed Ford the backup role last offseason and he was quickly thrust into the starting job after Chubb’s injury. He rushed for 813 yards and added 319 receiving yards. He showed a penchant for big plays with his speed in the open field — he had two 69-yard runs and five runs over 20 yards — but there was a boom-or-bust feel to his running.

Ford has a role in an offense. Does he continue to develop into a starting-caliber runner in Year 3 or is he best suited as a complementary player in a shared backfield? Even if Chubb returns by the start of the season, Ford could still log plenty of carries as the Browns featured back while they exercise caution in trying not to rush Chubb.

The Browns have generally carried three to four running backs on their roster. With Chubb, Ford and Strong under contract, there could be room to add another veteran to the mix.

The first name that comes to mind is Kareem Hunt, who looked rejuvenated after re-joining the team following Chubb’s injury and played well in a wrecking ball role in short yardage.

Hunt sounded unsure of his future after the season and the most likely path forward for the Browns could be to draft another running back and and then, if they do add another veteran, add someone later in the spring who will be coming in to compete for a roster spot.

Could that be Hunt? Maybe. Regardless of who it is, it would be surprising if the Browns made a significant investment here in free agency.