Getty Running back Kareem Hunt of the Cleveland Browns runs with the ball against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on October 23, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Browns have made no secret of it — they’re listening to trade offers for running back Kareem Hunt, the best of which are likely to come from the top of the NFL standings.
In a pass-happy league, some of the Super Bowl favorites still have questions on how to supplement their run games. The 5-1 Buffalo Bills are no exception, relying on bruising quarterback and MVP candidate Josh Allen to gain a lot of the team’s tough yards on the ground.
While Allen appears as though he was built for such work in a lab that produces perfected football-playing prototypes, the Bills are engaged in a dangerous game by letting their most important player risk his health for a few first downs in the middle of the season.
Enter Hunt, a former NFL rushing champion whose skill set was a bit redundant in Cleveland behind Nick Chubb even before the Browns started 2-5, losing four of those games by a combined nine points. If a few bounces go their way instead of the other, Cleveland might be standing pat, or even buying, prior to the November 1 trade deadline. But the previous results and upcoming schedule being what they are, it looks as though it is time for the Browns to cash in on a running back playing on the final year of his contract who isn’t likely to return after he hits free agency this summer.
For these reasons, and others, Bryan DeArdo of CBS Sports on Tuesday named the Bills the perfect trade partner for Hunt, as a half-year and playoff rental at RB may be enough to take Buffalo back to a Super Bowl for the first time since 1994.
Browns Can Inflate Hunt’s Trade Value in Deal With Bills
GettyQB Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills hurdles over Justin Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs during the fourth quarter of a game at Arrowhead Stadium on October 16, 2022 in Kansas City, Missouri.
DeArdo laid out the case for the Bills making a deal for Hunt as follows:
Buffalo reportedly [swung] and missed at the chance to acquire [Christian] McCaffrey, but they still have a chance at getting another versatile running back before the deadline. The Browns will reportedly listen to trade offers for multiple players before the deadline, including running back Kareem Hunt.
Hunt is a former NFL rushing champion who spent the past three-plus seasons sharing a backfield with Nick Chubb. He’s been one of the NFL’s best receiving backs since coming into the league in 2017, racking up 191 receptions and 17 touchdowns over that span.
Prior to the season, Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus approximated Hunt’s trade value at a fifth-round pick. Considering supply and demand with teams like the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles also potentially looking to upgrade at running back, as well as the Bills’ position to make a deep postseason run this year, the Browns may well be able to push Hunt’s value higher than Spielberger’s preseason projection.
If Cleveland is able to secure a late Day 2 or early Day 3 draft pick in 2023, the deal will be a win for the Browns — even if Hunt should go on to win a Super Bowl with Buffalo next February.
Browns Have Roster Depth to Replace Hunt
GettyCleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb.
Of course, Hunt would be missed as a change of pace back in the Browns’ offense, but Cleveland has plenty of horses ready to step up and replace him.
Chubb, a three-time Pro Bowler, has again been one of the best backs in the league this year, amassing 740 yards and eight rushing touchdowns through seven games. He currently leads the NFL in both categories, per Pro Football Reference.
Behind Chubb on the depth chart are rookie RB Jerome Ford and 2021 breakout rusher D’Ernest Johnson. The latter is only under contract through the end of the season, though Hunt’s departure would likely lead to more action for Johnson, which in turn could wind up in another short-term deal for him in Cleveland.
If not, Chubb remains under contract through the 2023 campaign, while Ford will be with the team for at least the next three and a half years.