Browns’ Quinshon Judkins Gets Bad News Ahead of Week 2
Quinshon Judkins signed his rookie contract with the Cleveland Browns, but it doesn’t seem likely he will be in the lineup this week.
Judkins missed all of training camp and the preseason as he was holding out for his contract. As well as his legal issues were being resolved. As Judkins is practicing ahead of Week 2, his status is uncertain. But the Browns listed him as the fourth-string running back on the unofficial depth chart.
Judkins is behind Jerome Ford, Dylan Sampson, and Raheim Sanders, so at this rate, it does seem likely he won’t be in the lineup for Week 2 when the Browns are on the road to play the Baltimore Ravens.
Judkins will need time to get ramped up and up to game speed before he gets into game action. Meanwhile, Cleveland got a temporary roster exemption for Judkins, meaning he can practice and doesn’t count on the 53-man roster for the time being.
“The #Browns are expected to get a temporary roster exemption for RB Quinshon Judkins, who is signing his fully guaranteed rookie contract today,” Pelissero wrote on X. “That’s unrelated to the league’s ongoing disciplinary process; it’s standard for players who missed camp and can last up to two games.”
Although Judkins isn’t technically on the 53-man roster yet, the hope was that he would play in Week 2.
Browns Coach Isn’t Sure When Judkins Will Play
After Cleveland’s Week 1 loss, the attention turned to Judkins and when he will be in the lineup.
However, after the loss, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski wasn’t thinking about Judkins or his return to the field.
“We’ll see,” Stefanski said on Sept. 8. “Got to get through this week of practice, but don’t know.”
If Judkins does get up to speed, he could be in the lineup in Week 2. But, that would mean Cleveland would have to make another roster move as he technically isn’t on the 53-man roster yet.
But, for now, Judkins will practice all week, but all signs point to him likely taking another week to get ready before making his debut in Week 3.
The Browns are a massive 11.5-point underdogs against the Ravens in Week 2 on the road.
Cleveland Had High Expectations for Judkins
After the Browns selected Judkins in the second round, he was expected to be the team’s starting running back.
Following the draft, Cleveland’s general manager, Andrew Berry, said he expected Judkins to be a bell-cow-like running back for the team.
“We feel like he’s just a very well-rounded back,” Berry said. “We’ve obviously been spoiled over the past couple of years, particularly with Nick and Kareem (Hunt). And we feel like he is very much in that mold in terms of skill set. Not necessarily saying that he’s going to, with certainty, develop into one of those players. We certainly hope that’s the case. But we think that he can be a bell cow runner that can really carry the load for us.”
Judkins was selected 36th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft after helping the Ohio State Buckeyes win the national championship.
Texans Planning Bigger Role for Nick Chubb
Expect to see some more Nick Chubb in the Houston Texans' offense after a solid Week 1 showing.
Following Houston's season opener loss vs. the LA Rams, 9-14, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans was still impressed by what he saw from Chubb in his debut since signing in June. In all, Chubb finished with 13 carries for 60 yards on the ground, averaging 4.6 yards a carry and leading the way in touches throughout the running back room.
And moving forward into the year, Ryans says he wants to lean on Chubb a bit more in the backfield.
"I think Chubb ran the ball really well," Ryans said in an interview with Texans Radio. "We tried to mix it up with the backs– got Woody some touches, Dameon [Pierce]– we're going to try to lean in with Chubb a little bit more."
"He deserves it. He’s shown that he continues to get better as the game went on. You saw him running stronger, finishing plays in a physical manner. So, we've got to get him going a little bit more, and I think he can really help us."
Chubb has seemingly made a super strong impression in the Texans' building since arriving on his one-year, $5 million deal in the offseason, and without Joe Mixon in the fold as he deals with a foot injury that has placed him on the Injured Reserve for at least the first four weeks of the year, the door has opened for Chubb to have some major responsibility in this scoring unit.
Chubb sits in the Texans' running back room alongside veteran Dameon Pierce, rookie Woody Marks, and team captain Dare Ogunbowale to share the workload with– certainly a group that faced a fair share of questions before the season, of just how the responsibilities would be divided in the backfield.
But, as Chubb continues to prove he's healthy from last season and the most productive guy in the room, Ryans clearly wants to get the ball in his hands in the run game while they deal with Mixon's absence– however long that may be– and bank on his physicality and consistent improvements to be a driving force in their work on the ground.
Chubb has reportedly been consistent and hard-working for the Texans dating back to training camp, has clear respect in the locker room from teammates and the coaching staff, and of course, has a proven track record in the league of being one of the better runners of the football in recent history while at his peak production.
That doesn't mean you won't see guys like Pierce, Marks, and Ogunbowale get some occasional reps their way as well, but if Ryans' comments prove true, we could very well be looking at the start of Chubb being a real bellcow in Houston.
