Before the start of this season, I wrote a blog about how Nick Chubb was better than Saquon Barkley. Before the 2018 NFL Draft, I was not super high on Saquon, or as high as everyone else seemed to be. I loved Nick Chubb at Georgia, it was just a question of which version you were getting. Were you getting the true Freshman who was better than Todd Gurley or the hampered one from a bad knee injury that split time with Sony Michel?
We know now that Chubb is back to the true Freshman version that was better than Todd Gurley. The more time that passes, we should start to acknowledge the truth. Saquon Barkley has never been better than Nick Chubb. Nick Chubb isn’t just better than Saquon. He’s on a different planet.
I don’t think people understand how good Nick Chubb is. Chubb is the NFL leading rusher right now. People complain about how bad the offensive line is for Baker Mayfield. IF the offensive is so bad, why is Nick Chubb leading the league in rushing? He’s either overcoming it or the offensive line struggles have been overstated. The truth is the Browns offense is probably slightly below average. Chubb is dominating anyway. Chubb isn’t just leading the league in rushing. He’s averaging 5.2 yards per carry. Raheem Mostert and Devin Singletary are the only backs with a better mark but have significantly fewer touches.
Nick Chubb leads the NFL in rushing yards. Not Ezekiel Elliott. Not Christian McCaffrey. Not Dalvin Cook. Nick Chubb does. The dysfunctional Browns aren’t holding him back either. Chubb is also more efficient than all of them. This isn’t just a Nick Chubb vs. Saquon Barkley argument. This is a Nick Chubb might be the best running back in the NFL argument. There aren’t more than 2 or 3 who are better. Barkley sure as hell isn’t one of them.
Yes, the Browns have better players than the Giants. Let’s also not act like the Browns passing game has been productive. Baker has been one of the worst starters in the league. Yes, Barkley was hurt this year. He also hasn’t been more productive than Chubb before or after his injury. Barkley is averaging 4.1 yards per carry. In fact, Barkley has only two individual games where’s he’s topped Chubb’s season average mark. On the other hand. Chubb has 5 games where he’s hit the 6 YPC mark.
Saquon Barkley is never going to be better than Nick Chubb. It’s not in his DNA. It all traces back to the part where Saquon isn’t efficient enough to do so. Nobody runs backward more often than Barkley does. If Saquon doesn’t hit the home run, he’s not good. Every game he’s going to have carries where he loses yardage looking for the home run. It’s not a stable output. Nick Chubb is a back that will come downhill and kill you each and every time.
Picking Saquon Barkley with the 2nd pick in the NFL Draft was laughable at the time, and it’s worse now. Nick Chubb is better than him he costs a hell of a lot less. It’s time people start accepting it.
