Browns RB Nick Chubb dedicates his career to honor the late Jim Brown

Jim Brown gave his blessings for the Browns to draft Nick Chubb five years ago. Now the Cleveland tailback wants to honor the NFL legend for the rest of his career.

For most NFL players, Jim Brown was a lofty, aspirational name. But he was a ghost from the record books. After all, he dazzled the league in the 1960s, back when their grandparents were young and watching NFL games. When Brown died three weeks ago, few NFL players actually knew the 87-year-old, who made the Pro Bowl every season of his career.

But Nick Chubb, the former Georgia Bulldog, had the honor of dealing with the late, great running back.

“I’m definitely playing for him from here on out,” Nick Chubb told ClevelandBrowns.com this week.

The first interaction Chubb had with Brown came during the 2018 NFL Draft. Commissioner Roger Goodell escorted the then 82-year-old to the stage to announce Cleveland’s second-round selection.

Cleveland GM sent Nick Chubb’s Georgia tapes to Jim Brown

John Dorsey, who was Cleveland’s GM in 2018, sent Chubb’s Georgia game tapes to Brown in the weeks leading up to the draft. Dorsey wanted to see what Brown thought about selecting the young Bulldog back. Brown apparently gave emphatic approval.

The day Brown died, Dorsey, who now is with the Lions, texted Chubb and reminded him about what the legend thought of him.

“Just hearing that, it was a blessing,” Nick Chubb said. “He saw something in me, and it’s special.”

Chubb talked about Brown earlier this month during an interview with the Akron Beacon-Journal.

“He called my name on draft night and that was already special,” Nick Chubb said. “Then I got a chance to meet him and it was everything. He was able to tell me things, teach me about football and just talk to me about being a person. It was definitely an honor being drafted by the Browns. If I wasn’t drafted, I never would’ve got a chance to meet him.”

Could Chubb break Brown’s team rushing record?

Most NFL historians rate Brown as the best running back to dominate the league. Brown pounded NFL linemen then ran away from them. And he retired with the NFL rushing record. Decades later, Nick Chubb’s stats are tracking Brown’s. But it’s with the caveat that Brown did his work in far fewer games. Chubb has gained 6,341 yards in his career — at this point in Brown’s NFL tenure he had 6,463. Chubb also has posted four straight seasons of at least 1,000 yards. In three of his last four, Chubbs gained more than 1,200.

But Nick Chubb said when he thinks of Brown, he doesn’t dwell on the stats or his running style. Chubb said the “most impactful thing” Brown taught him was to “stand for what you believe in.”

“He was a strong man,” Chubb said. “He stood for a lot of things, and he was himself. I think that’s the biggest thing I take from him. Just always be true to yourself.”

Then Chubb talked more about the lessons he learned.

“I feel like the biggest thing that he taught me was something he never even said,” Nick Chubb said. “Just probably just me watching his film and playing here in Cleveland behind him. Just knowing that the greatest running back played here, and that’s enough inspiration and motivation for me. … To know, I’m coming behind Jim Brown, so people around here expect a lot from a running back.”