Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Former Browns RB Nick Chubb retires, ending career of 'what ifs'

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Aug 22, 2026 9:33 AM ET

Former Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans running back Nick Chubb announced his retirement from the NFL on Friday night, ending a career that was equal parts brilliance and frustration. The 30-year-old might be one of the great "what if" players in the modern NFL era, and certainly for the Browns.

Former Browns running back Nick Chubb announces retirement

When Chubb was at his best, there were not many running backs in the NFL better than him, and there is a strong argument to be made that he was the NFL's best running back between the 2019 and 2022 seasons.

It was during that stretch that he was not only a lock for over 1,200 yards per season, but he also consistently averaged over five yards per carry and was as smooth and dominant as any back in the league. It did not matter how good or bad the Browns were as a team; you knew you could count on Chubb to be a difference-maker.

Former four-time Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb announced his retirement from the NFL at age 30. pic.twitter.com/D1UZhW6RpA
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 22, 2026

Everything went sideways for him early in the 2023 season when a devastating knee injury in Week 2 ended his season. It proved to be the beginning of the end for his career.

While he was eventually able to return late in the 2024 season, he was never quite the same and appeared in just 22 games after that, rushing for only 838 yards in that time.

He spent the 2025 season with the Texans, rushing for 506 yards and scoring three touchdowns.

Given how good he was at his peak, and how many prime years he lost due to the injury, it is fair to wonder if he was potentially robbed of a Hall of Fame career.

He finishes his career with 7,349 yards in eight seasons, and that is with the final three seasons of his career being completely lost to injury. Another two or three 1,400-yard seasons would have easily put him over 10,000 yards and put him into that Hall of Fame range. Instead, there are just a lot of "what if" questions that will have to be asked for one of the best Browns players since their return in the 1999 season.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on X @AGretz

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