As Pittsburgh hopes to have found its running back of the future in first-round pick Najee Harris, the Cleveland Browns announced a three-year, $36.6 million extension with running back Nick Chubb that will keep him in Cleveland through the 2024 season.
A source provided ESPN’s Adam Schefter with news of the deal on Saturday, but there was no official word from the Browns until a tweet was sent from the team’s official Twitter page on Monday morning.
We've signed RB Nick Chubb to a 3-year extension!
📰 » https://t.co/73aey9D88M pic.twitter.com/ji9x47mzrb
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 2, 2021
“I’m happy that I will be able to be here for many more years,” said Chubb. “The Browns put their faith in me during the draft and I want to say thank you to everyone who believed in me and who has supported me.”
After missing four games in 2020, Chubb still found himself ranked seventh in the NFL with 1,067 rushing yards. The 25-year-old has also punched his ticket to two Pro Bowls and has accumulated 3,557 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns in three seasons with the Browns. Chubb rushed for 76 yards against Pittsburgh in the Wild Card round of the playoffs last season, but it was his 40-yard receiving touchdown that packed the biggest punch.
Chubb joins fellow Browns running back Kareem Hunt in receiving an extension after Hunt penned his own two-year, $13.25 million extension last year that keeps him in Cleveland through 2022.
Cleveland and Pittsburgh meet for the first time in this new NFL season on Halloween during Week 8.