BEREA, Ohio — Sunday will be a reunion of sorts as the Browns take on the Kansas City Chiefs, with running back Kareem Hunt returning to Cleveland to face his former team.
Hunt, who entered free agency at the end of last season with the Browns. After being unsigned by the Browns or any other team into the 2024 season, Hunt signed with the Chiefs in September. The Willoughby native departed Northeast Ohio, heading west to rejoin the team that drafted him.
It wasn't easy for Hunt to leave the Browns. The running back said in January that he hoped to remain in orange and brown.
"If the opportunity presents itself and it's right here, then I wouldn't be opposed to coming back. It's my hometown and I want to do nothing but help them win the Super Bowl," Hunt said. "It's my ultimate hope no matter what, even if I'm playing for another team or anything, I would always be happy and satisfied if they bring a championship to Cleveland, it's my hometown. Shoot, I'd probably be at the parade cheering them on too, if that was to happen. I wish nothing but the best for the organization and the Cleveland Browns and I'm happy that I got to be a part of this journey for so long."
But if there was another team for him to be a part of, it was undoubtedly the Chiefs.
"Kareem's from Cleveland. He loves the Cleveland Browns. He is a Brown. So yeah, I'm sure it was hard for him, but he's back where he started," said Browns running back Nick Chubb, who has long been a close friend of Hunt's.
Since rejoining the Chiefs in September, Hunt has shown he's got plenty left in the tank. With 608 rushing yards and five touchdowns, as well as 148 receiving yards, Hunt has played a role in the Chiefs' success this season.
“Kareem looks good. Kareem is obviously a person and a player that I have a ton of respect for. He’s elite in short yardage, which we’ve seen firsthand. He’s elite in the screen game, which we’ve seen firsthand. He runs hard, he looks good," said head coach Kevin Stefanski on Wednesday.
While the Browns prepare their defense to go against a familiar face, many on the team are excited to see their former teammate, especially Chubb.
Chubb, while hoping to beat his good friend Hunt on Sunday, is thrilled to see him thriving in his new opportunity with Kansas City.
"Oh, excited for him, for sure. Obviously he got drafted there, it means a lot to him. He was on pace to having crazy numbers when he first got there, his first year and second year, and obviously he ended up here for whatever reason, but I had a chance to get to meet him, play with him, which I'm blessed, he's more than a teammate, he's a brother to me," Chubb said. "So to see him get to go back, he always expressed how much Kansas City meant to him, so to see him go back there and have success, I know that's what he's always dreamed of. So I'm proud of him, happy for him. Happy to see him on Sunday."
The Browns are ranked 22nd in rushing defensive yards per game this season, averaging 127.9. They'll look to button that up with Hunt coming back to town. But they'll also look to showcase their own run game, something they've been working to grow over the past few weeks.
"I think last game we did a good job of incorporating the run and finding gaps and holes and Jerome Ford and Nick Chubb finding ways to attack the second level and get more yards," said quarterback Jameis Winston. "I believe the way that I grew up knowing football, you establish the game with the running game and you work things off of that."
For Chubb specifically, he's entering this week taking ownership on getting the run game up to the next level.
"I think we've got to give a reason to run the ball more in which I feel like that's my responsibility alone—the offensive linemen, Jerome, just to get them reason to run the ball more," Chubb said.
The Browns and Chiefs kick things off inside Huntington Bank Field on Sunday at 1 p.m.
