Updated Browns Running Back Depth Chart Following Kareem Hunt Signing

With Nick Chubb on IR and Kareem Hunt once again a Cleveland Brown, the running back depth chart has undergone some pretty serious changes over the last few days.

This is especially noteworthy because the depth chart already got a major facelift in the offseason, and the Browns running back room is almost unrecognizable to fans who haven't been keeping a close eye on the action.

Here's a look at how Cleveland's running back depth chart shakes out now.

Browns RB Depth Chart

RB4 (Practice Squad): Hassan Hall

Undrafted rookie Hassan Hall isn't on the 53-man roster, but he's under contract with the Browns and holding down the RB4 spot on the depth chart.

Cleveland signed Hall as an undrafted free agent immediately following the draft, waived him on roster cutdown day and immediately signed him to the practice squad after he cleared waivers. That series of events is an obvious sign that they think he carries some interesting upside.

Hall never really had a chance to be a featured back in his five collegiate seasons, but 2022 saw him flash some intriguing versatility by tallying 116 carries and 28 receptions in the Georgia Tech offense.

He’s got a nice blend of fast-twitch quickness and top-end speed that served him well as a kick returner as well, returning two kicks for touchdowns in his early college days at Louisville.

Hall is still a very raw prospect though, and he should be considered a longshot to ever make a major impact at the NFL level.

RB3: Pierre Strong Jr.

After Demetric Felton and John Kelly spent the entire preseason battling it out for the Browns' RB3 role, the answer to who would win it ended up being "neither of them." The Browns instead decided to make a trade to address the position by bringing in Pierre Strong Jr. from the New England Patriots.

A 2022 fourth-round pick out of South Dakota State, Strong barely got to see the field as a rookie with the Patriots.

He played only 51 offensive snaps in his first season but did show some flashes with 100 rushing yards on 10 carries plus 42 receiving yards on 7 receptions. He gained first downs on 8 of his 17 touches, averaging 8.4 yards per touch.

Obviously we don’t want to get too excited about a 17-play sample, but it’s easy to like those early flashes of potential.

So far as a Brown he’s played 13 offensive snaps, scoring a touchdown on one of his two carries and having yet to catch a pass.

The addition of Hunt makes it clear that Kevin Stefanski isn’t ready to move forward with Strong as his RB2, but that could change over the offseason if Strong continues to show positive development.

RB2: Kareem Hunt

Don't think that just because Kareem Hunt used to be the RB1 when Nick Chubb got hurt he'll suddenly reclaim that same role in 2023. There's a reason we were happy to let Hunt walk and replace him with Jerome Ford.

While a few teams showed interest in Hunt as a free agent this offseason, it's hard to ignore the big red flag sent by his remaining unsigned through Week 2.

He had a career-worst season for rushing efficiency in 2022 (3.8 yards per carry) and Pro Football Focus gave him the worst rushing grade and second-worst receiving grades of his career. It's not like he was dealing with significantly harder conditions than he had in the past either, as Chubb still ran for 5.0 yards per carry in the same offense last year.

Hunt's apparently dropped 10 pounds since last season though, and we've often seen running backs look a little more explosive and produce better results when they get lighter. This isn't the 90s where you need that extra bulk to survive regular collisions with 270-pound linebackers wearing neck rolls.

It will be great if Hunt can contribute in a big way, but I'm going to limit my expectations and assume he plays a minor role while Ford is the workhorse, rather than being a 60-40 split typer of backfield.

RB1: Jerome Ford

This year will be Jerome Ford's audition to be the long-term leader in the Cleveland backfield.

He absolutely looked the part when he replaced Chubb after the injury on Monday night, rushing for 106 yards on 16 carries and adding 25 yards plus a touchdown on 3 receptions. He also punched in a 2-point conversion for good measure.

Ford got almost no run as a fifth-round pick last year, finishing his rookie season with just 12 yards on 8 carries. The Browns coaches really liked what they saw in practice and minicamp though, because it was clear all offseason that he was going to be the RB2 behind Chubb.

And now signing Hunt rather than making a splashy move like trading for Jonathan Taylor has sent another clear indicator of how much they like Ford.

Stefanski trusts Ford to be the RB1 even with Deshaun Watson and co. struggling to get anything going through the air, and that means he will get all the opportunities to prove himself that he can handle.

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