Jerome Ford’s Best Use Might Be As A Trade Asset
Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Jerome Ford quickly sprung onto the scene last year for the Cleveland Browns, but his optimal value for the team in 2024 for the team might be what he brings to the backfield. Instead, the most valuable way the Browns can use him is as a chip to fill another hole via a trade.
When Nick Chubb went down with a severe knee injury in Week 2 of the 2023 season, the Browns running game was in some major trouble. After rushing eight times for 12 yards during the 2022 season, Ford was given an opportunity and ran with it. Ford rushed 204 times for 813 yards and four touchdowns. He was also a factor in the passing game, finding the end zone five times as a receiver.
Heading into 2024, there are still some question marks surrounding Chubb, the most important of which is when he will be ready to step on the field. At this point, there hasn’t been any indication about whether he will be ready to start, and whenever he is back on the field, there does have to be some worry about how effective he will be. With all these question marks, there are many who believe Ford could play a big role again in 2024. Even still, he may be less valuable to Cleveland than whatever assets they could get back in a trade.
Even if Chubb does miss some time, the Browns backfield is still crowded. The team brought in D’Onta Foreman and Nyheim Hines, and both have shown to be solid running backs. In 2020, with the Indianapolis Colts, Hines rushed for 380 yards and three touchdowns. Hines will be running behind an even better offensive line this season, and if he gets those types of touches here, his production should increase.
Browns General Manager Andrew Berry recently talked about the 2023 season and the team’s running production, hitting on the offensive line being a key reason that Ford had so much success.
“We were pleased with how the running game turned out throughout the year,” general manager Andrew Berry said. “Obviously, Nick is one in a million and maybe one in a billion and so we’re not going to get the consistent, explosive runs that you get with the best back in football. But we also do firmly believe that the run game is predominantly predicated on the strength of the offensive line and then the actual scheme. When you have a difference-maker like Nick and someone who can create at the level that he can, he can truly elevate that area of the game. But we did have to learn to run without him and were able to do it effectively enough. But obviously, Nick is a difference-maker.”
Berry and the rest of the Browns front office feel that the running back room is significantly aided by playmaking linemen like Jack Conklin, Jedrick Wills Jr, and Joel Bitonio leading the way up front. With that in mind, and with players like Foreman and Hines brought in, it makes a whole lot of sense to see what type of draft capital or players they could get in return for Ford.
The Browns offensive line dealt with injuries last season, and Wills Jr, Conklin, and Dawand Jones were all injured during the 2023 season. With an offensive line that looks to be healthy, no matter who Cleveland puts in the backfield, they should be in line for a big season.
The good news for the Browns is that NFL teams are always looking for running back depth, especially with how short the shelf life of an NFL running back is. The Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys are two teams that would make a whole lot of sense. After Isiah Pacheco, the Chiefs running back room is a big question mark. Making the AFC favorites better might not be that appealing, which means the Cowboys could make so much sense.
The Cowboys have a talented offense, but their running back situation is suddenly a question mark. Ezekiel Elliott has lost a couple of steps, and despite this, he is currently number one on the depth chart heading into 2024. Ford is someone who could go to Dallas and probably win the job out of camp. The Browns getting a draft pick or two and Ford getting more playing time somewhere else would be a win-win for both parties. Ford was a nice story for the Browns in 2023, but that maybe should only be a one-year story in Cleveland.
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