It is certainly not a stretch to say the rookie running back Trent Richardson struggled on Sunday in his NFL debut for the Cleveland Browns.
The numbers speak for themselves: 19 carries for 39 yards and a long gain of just nine yards. Richardson looked like a running back who hadn’t taken a real snap in a game since the BCS Championship game in January, and certainly nothing like the running back the Browns and their fans expected when the team drafted him third overall in the 2012 NFL Draft.
“It would get frustrating at times, but at the same time you’ve got to think that not every play is going to be perfect,” Richardson told the team’s website. “Our offensive line fought real hard today, there were some mistakes that we all made, and we’re behind them 100 percent. I know they’re behind me 100 percent. I have to make people miss and I didn’t make people miss like I usually do, so I have to get on my job.”
Even though he did not play in the preseason while recovering from a knee operation, Richardson said he was prepared for the opening of the season.
“I was always in the film room studying,” he said. “From the situation we came from the game gets a tad bit faster. It’s about the same for real, but at the same time it’s different when you’re out on the field. I think it was a pretty good day for us trying to get used to the pro-system.”
Browns coach Pat Shurmur agreed that Richardson showed some rust.
“There were times when we had enough blockers and we didn’t get enough yards,” the second-year coach said. “There were a couple of times when there was an extra guy there that we have to make a guy miss. We have to get more out of the run game. (Trent) looked like a guy just back to me.”
Richardson’s rough day brought up a rough comparison to another Browns running back taken in the first round of the draft. According to Cold Hard Football Facts, Richardson’s 2.1 yards per carry was the lowest average for the first running back selected in the draft who was making his NFL debut since – William Green in 2002.
Oh dear.
So that got us thinking about other notable running backs in Browns’ history and how Richardson’s debut stacks up with either the rookie season posted by the franchise’s best running backs or the season that they became the primary ball carrier.
Jim Brown (1957-65, 12,312 rushing yards). Brown made his debut against the New York Giants in a 6-3 win by the Browns (it was the Browns first opening day win since 1953; the more things change ...) The game story from that day says Brown rushed for 89 yards on 21 attempts, and picked up two important first downs on the game-winning drive. Brown would rush for 942 yards on the season, leading the NFL in rushing for the first of eight times in his nine-year career.
Leroy Kelly (1964-73, 7,274 rushing yards) Kelly only carried the ball six times his rookie season and had just 43 carries in his first two years while backing up Jim Brown. Kelly took over as the primary back in 1966 and, in the opening game against Washington, he carried 16 times for 54 yards (3.38 yards per carry) and one touchdown (a 29-yard run that opened the scoring for the Browns). Kelly ran for 1,141 yards that season, the first of three consecutive years he would surpass 1,000 yards rushing (leading the NFL in rushing in 1967 and 1968). In those three years he also led the NFL in rushing touchdowns with 15, 11 and 16 (playing a 14-game schedule).
Mike Pruitt (1976-84, 6,540 rushing yards). In the 1976 opener against the Jets, Pruitt ran five times for seven yards (1.40 average). He carried the ball 52 times in his rookie year for 138 yards. It wasn’t until his fourth season, 1979, that Pruitt broke 1,000 yards rushing with 1,294 yards (his best season), the start of a streak that saw him rush for more than 1,000 yards four times in a five-year period.
Greg Pruitt (1973-81, 5,496 rushing yards). The Browns opened 1973 season against Pittsburgh and Pruitt, backing up Kelly, did not have a carry. In his first four games he only ran three times for four yards. Pruitt would rush for 540 yards in his second season (1974) before starting a three-year streak of breaking 1,000 yards from 1975 through 1977. In the ’75 season opener against Cincinnati, Pruitt scored a touchdown on a broken play where, according to The Plain Dealer’s game story, “the little swiftie (started) going to his right, faking a pass and reversing his field to sweep the other side for the touchdown.” (Little swiftie? Seriously?)
Ernie Green (1962-68, 3,204 rushing yards). Green ran one time for one yard in the 1962 opener against the New York Giants. In his rookie year, he would only have 31 carries for 139 yards. He was a two-time Pro Bowler in 1966 (750 yards rushing) and 1967 (710 yards rushing).
Bobby Mitchell (1958-61, 2,297 rushing yards). Mitchell was a halfback who was a pass catching threat (he eventually moved to flanker after being traded to Washington). He ran 80 times for 500 yards his rookie year (6.25 average) playing next to Jim Brown, and followed that up with 743 yards on 131 rushes his second season (5.67 average). In the season opener against the Rams, Mitchell scored a touchdown on a four-yard pass and had a 22-yard run on the Browns’ game-winning drive. After four seasons in Cleveland where he totaled 3,759 combined rushing and receiving yards while scoring 32 touchdowns (and adding six more touchdowns on punt or kick returns), Art Modell traded him to the Redskins so he could draft Ernie Davis.
So while Richardson didn’t dazzle anyone on Sunday, other than Philadelphia defensive back Kurt Coleman, don’t give up hope just yet, Browns fans. Not everyone can make their first game a memorable one.
And Shurmur, for one, expects Richardson to bounce back this week against the Bengals, who were rocked on Monday as Baltimore rolled up 430 yards of offense – including rushing for 5.3 yards a carry – on the way to a 44-13 win.
“I think you will see him be a little bit fresher, a little bit sharper in everything he does,” Shurmur said. “The plays that he carries the football as well as some of the things that he has to do when he doesn’t, which aren’t always so obvious. I think he’ll be sharper.”
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One last note on quarterback Brandon Weeden, who had a memorable day (and not in the good way) in his debut on Sunday. While he struggled, it wasn’t all on him.
According to Pro Football Focus, the offensive line did its share to stall the passing game.
Part of the problem that led to Weeden’s terrible day was the constant pressure he was under. One of the key matchups in the game was Mitchell Schwartz going against Jason Babin. Predictably, the rookie right tackle struggled to slow Babin down and finished with a -4.7 overall grade and a -2.9 pass block grade. Both offensive guards struggled to handle the Eagles’ defensive tackles in pass protection too. Shawn Lauvao (-2.4) and Jason Pinkston (-1.4) will both need to be much better if Weeden is to get a chance to develop.
“It’s only one game,” tight end Alex Smith told The Beacon Journal. “We have 15 more. We’ve all had games where you want to crawl under a rock. It’s all about how you respond. That’s what I’m most excited to see – how he comes back. I expect to see Brandon come out slingin’.”
If the Browns don't get the offense line fixed - and soon - Weeden may not be around for all 15 of those games.
(Photo by Getty Images)