When the Browns and Steelers clashed in Week 2, Cleveland suffered far more than a loss to their archrival. Many would argue that they had lost the heart and soul of their team.

That heart and soul made his first public appearance at Cleveland Browns Stadium since sustaining a horrific knee injury in that Monday Night Football game.

His appearance on the stadium scoreboard elicited a raucous response from Cleveland’s home crowd.

What a remarkable occasion for Chubb, who is still recovering from a knee injury sustained in September in Pittsburgh. Some have even referred to this week’s rematch as a “Nick Chubb revenge game.”

Chubb underwent a second surgery to repair a torn ACL in his knee just this week. Previously, he underwent surgery to repair the MCL and meniscus, both of which were damaged during the play.

It was clear that the night Chubb was killed was an emotionally draining ordeal for the whole squad and fan community. What felt like rock bottom for Cleveland became a rallying cry. The locker room message the following week was to dedicate the 2023 season to their injured teammate.

With Chubb as a motivator, the club has scraped and clawed its way to a 6-3 record and is very much in the AFC Playoff picture. Not only that, but the Browns’ rush game, led by second-year back Jerome Ford and veteran Kareem Hunt, has averaged 147.9 yards per game, good for second in the NFL.

Now the Browns offense have lost both Chubb and star quarterback Deshaun Watson for rest of 2023, as part of a lengthy list of injured players they’ve had to manage this season. The Browns will attempt to overcome both key injuries and clinch a playoff berth over the last eight weeks of the regular season.

Spencer German contributes to a number of blogs in Northeast Ohio, including Cavs Insider, Cleveland Baseball Insider, and, most famously, Browns Digest. He also fills in as a host on Cleveland Sports Radio, 92.3 The Fan, one of Cleveland’s Browns radio affiliate stations.