Browns Could Reunite With Former Fan-Favorite Running Back

The Cleveland Browns are in the thick of a search for running back depth when just one year ago the team had so much that talented players couldn’t get on the field.

All that has changed over the last several months as Kareem Hunt hit free agency, where he remains, and D’Ernest Johnson inked a deal to join the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags should have an above-average offense this season, but unfortunately for Johnson it doesn’t appear he will be a part of it.

“The Jacksonville Jaguars signed former Thursday Night Football hero D’Ernest Johnson this offseason in free agency after he spent four seasons in Cleveland,” Cory Kinnan of USA Today’s Browns Wire wrote on Wednesday, August 23. “However, they then drafted Tank Bigsby out of Auburn in the 2023 NFL draft, and Johnson is now listed as the fourth back on the depth chart in Jacksonville.

“If Johnson gets the ax from the Jaguars, the Browns must be all over a reunion as he would be the easy-money RB3 on their roster,” Kinnan continued.

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At the moment, Johnson isn’t an option for the Browns — or any other team for that matter. But the employment of a fourth running back is relatively unheard of around the NFL and isn’t a strategy the Jaguars are likely to employ. As such, unless something changes to push him up the depth chart, Johnson will likely hit the waiver wire come league-wide cut down day at the end of August.

A reunion in Cleveland would make considerable sense after Hunt’s departure and second-year Jerome Ford’s preseason injury battle. Ford has been sidelined for multiple weeks with a hamstring injury and isn’t expected to play in the Browns’ preseason finale against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday.

The choices behind Ford are Demetric Felton Jr., who figures to be the de facto winner of the job pending new developments, and fourth-string RB John Kelly Jr. The Browns also hosted a workout for former Green Bay Packers running back Kylin Hill on Wednesday but did not immediately sign him.

Johnson lost the third-string gig to Ford last year after the Browns selected the then-rookie RB in the fifth-round of the 2022 NFL draft. Johnson departed Cleveland after spending most of last season in street clothes, as Ford served as the team’s regular kick returner when healthy.

However, Ford’s offensive experience remains incredibly limited, with just eight carries for 12 yards on his resumé. He was also hurt last season, suffering an ankle injury against the Atlanta Falcons in early October that sent him to the injured reserve (IR) list for four weeks.

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Browns Have Always Preferred D’Ernest Johnson to Demetric Felton Jr.

Johnson moved up the depth chart and into uniform to replace Ford during that stretch. He was the Browns’ preferred option over Felton then and presumably would also be now were he still a member of the team.

Johnson’s deal in Jacksonville is for just one-year and $1.2 million, of which only $50,000 is guaranteed. That contract makes parting ways with the running back simple on the front end. Meanwhile, Cleveland has been on a contract-restructuring spree to open up 2023 salary cap space and currently leads the NFL in that department with nearly $38.4 million on hand.

Cutting bait with Felton hasn’t necessarily been a long time coming in Cleveland, though he has bounced between the wide receiver and running back positions during his two years with the team never really making a significant impact anywhere on the field.

Johnson, on the other hand, appeared in 17 games and made two starts for the Browns in 2021. He rushed the ball 100 times that year for 534 yards and three touchdowns, per Pro Football Reference. He also made 19 catches for 137 yards.

The running back became something of a local hero after working for years to earn his place on the Browns’ roster, his story even catching the attention of Cleveland sports icon LeBron James.

Johnson knows the Browns’ offensive system and could be ready to step in immediately if called upon. He is a proven entity and a fan-favorite in the city who can be had at minimal cost should he hit the waiver wire, which makes the proposal a win-win-win for all parties involved.

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