Nick Chubb had the second of two surgeries on his left knee Tuesday, this one to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament, the team announced.
Team physician James Voos performed both surgeries at University Hospitals Drusinsky Sports Medicine Institute. Voos termed both procedures a success and said Chubb’s progressed well since the first one.
The running back is still expected to be able to return to play at some point next season.
The timetable for a return from a torn ACL is usually around eight months but can take longer. Chubb had surgery Sept. 29 to repair damage to the medial capsule, meniscus and medial collateral ligament. He’s been rehabbing at the Browns facility in Berea.
The Browns didn’t provide an update on quarterback Deshaun Watson’s left ankle, which was injured Sunday in a win over Baltimore. He had an MRI on Monday. The team is scheduled to practice Wednesday for the first time this week.
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Chubb sustained the hard-to-watch, season-ending injury Sept. 18 in the Week 2 loss in Pittsburgh. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick hit him directly in the side of the knee while his foot was planted. Chubb’s teammates declared the hit clean, and Fitzpatrick said he wasn’t trying to hurt Chubb.
The Browns will host the Steelers on Sunday at 1 p.m. in a showdown of 6-3 teams.
Chubb, 27, is a four-time Pro Bowler who finished second in the NFL in rushing in 2019 and ’21. The second-round pick in 2018 has rushed for 6,511 yards, 48 touchdowns and a 5.3 average. In five-plus quarters this season, he carried 28 times for 170 yards, a 6.1 average.
Deshaun Watson undergoes MRI on injured left ankle
He’s widely considered the heart and soul of the team and its hardest worker. Despite the absence of Chubb, the Browns are 6-3 and have the second-ranked run offense at 147.9 yards a game. The coaches tweaked the scheme at the bye, the line has been strong and they’re using a backfield committee of Jerome Ford, Kareem Hunt and Pierre Strong Jr.
Chubb previously had a serious injury to the left knee. When he was at the University of Georgia in 2015, the knee dislocated and the posterior cruciate, lateral collateral and medial collateral ligaments tore. He rebounded to be the No. 35 pick of the Browns and missed only seven games in his first five NFL seasons.
The last year of Chubb’s three-year, $36.6 million contract is 2024. He’s due to make $11.775 million.
