After announcing his retirement in August, Nick Chubb returned to Ohio on Friday to officially bring his professional football career to an end as a Cleveland Browns legend. During his return, Chubb reflected on the devastating 2023 knee injury that ultimately played a major role in shaping his decision to retire.
The Browns signed Chubb to a one-day contract, allowing the franchise to celebrate the end of his legendary career at the place where it all began. During his retirement press conference on Friday, Chubb admitted that he “never really came back” from the 2023 injury, describing the way his career unfolded afterward as a “sad ending.”
“It'll be emotional for me, I know that. I think for everybody, too, just with how things went here with me, how I've had so much success, and then just to get taken down like that. And then never really came back, it was just kind of a sad ending,” Chubb said.
Chubb suffered the devastating left knee injury during Week 2 of the 2023 season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Though the veteran running back managed to return to the field in 2024, his comeback was cut short once again when he suffered a season-ending foot injury in Week 15.
Chubb began his NFL career after the Browns selected him in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He spent the first seven seasons of his professional career in Cleveland before joining the Houston Texans for the 2025 season, after the Browns decided not to re-sign the four-time Pro Bowl running back following the 2024 season.
However, Chubb made it clear that his connection with the city and franchise remains permanent.
“Cleveland forever. I'm a Brown for life,” Chubb said.
During his first five NFL seasons with the Browns, Chubb led all running backs in yards per rush. He also ranks third in career rushing yards in Browns history with 6,843 yards, trailing only Jim Brown and Leroy Kelly.