Getty D'Ernest Johnson #30 of the Cleveland Browns carries the ball in the first half of the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 20, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Browns are looking to cash in on running back D’Ernest Johnson, who fought his way up through the organization over the last three seasons but now finds himself standing healthy on the sidelines behind what is perhaps the best backfield in football.
Johnson was a healthy scratch from the Browns’ Week 1 grudge match against former quarterback Baker Mayfield and the Carolina Panthers, and it doesn’t appear that anything short of an injury to a prominent player will get the fourth-year rusher back in uniform.
Nick Chubb is first on the depth chart, followed by Kareem Hunt who scored a pair of touchdowns Sunday. The third-string spot belongs to rookie Jerome Ford, who beat Johnson out for the job during training camp.
Brad Stainbrook of the Orange and Brown Report wrote Monday that while the Browns aren’t necessarily shopping Johnson actively, they are all ears if any team in need of a running back approaches them with a trade proposal.
“My understanding is there was no trade close for Johnson making him inactive. However … the team is open to trading him,” Stainbrook wrote. “Browns viewed Chubb, Hunt and Ford ahead of Johnson this week.”
There are a handful of organizations that could use a shot of life at the position. Chief among them is the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams.
D’Ernest Johnson Would Compete For Rams’ RB1 Job Immediately
Getty ImagesRunning back D’Ernest Johnson of the Cleveland Browns.
The Buffalo Bills embarrassed the Rams to open the NFL season on Thursday, September 8, routing L.A. by a score of 31-10 in their own stadium. The Rams’ problems were pervasive on both sides of the ball, but perhaps the most glaring issue was the complete absence of a competent rushing attack.
Los Angeles mustered just 52 total rushing yards, led by Darrell Henderson Jr. who put up 47 of them on 13 carries. Backup Cam Akers was considerably more disappointing, carrying the ball three times for a total of zero yards.
Johnson, on the other hand, proved himself a starting-caliber running back in 2021, earning the call as RB1 for the Browns on two occasions. He amassed 534 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 100 carries, complemented by 19 receptions for 137 yards, per Pro Football Reference.
Cleveland inked Johnson to a one-year deal worth more than $1.2 million during the offseason. While that salary is far from onerous should it remain on the books, there is no sense in the Browns paying a player seven figures if he isn’t likely see the field in 2022.
Johnson’s contract makes a trade exceedingly easy. If the Rams do come to the table with interest in the running back, the Browns will probably try to squeeze out something in the ballpark of a fifth-round draft pick in return.
San Francisco 49ers Also May be in Market For Browns’ RB Johnson
Getty ImagesRunning back D’Ernest Johnson of the Cleveland Browns.
Another NFC West Division team could also be a suitor for Johnson after an injury that occurred over the weekend.
The San Francisco 49ers lost starting running back Elijah Mitchell for the next two months due to a knee injury he sustained Sunday against the Chicago Bears. Johnson would also compete immediately for starting duties with Jeff Wilson Jr. were the Browns to ship him to the Bay Area.
Outside of a handful of players at the very top of the position, running backs don’t command the same kind of value in the NFL they once did. That said, the Rams and Niners met in the NFC Championship Game last season and both have expectations of another deep playoff run, making each more likely to aggressively fill a need in the backfield than other franchises managing different situations.