- D’Ernest Johnson will be filling in for the Browns at RB, replacing Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt.
- Johnson is a third-year NFL player out of the University of South Florida, where he played for four years.
- Online sportsbooks give him -115 odds to go OVER 60.5 rushing yards.
CLEVELAND - With Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt on the shelf, the Cleveland Browns will turn to D’Ernest Johnson for their Thursday Night Football game against the Denver Broncos.
Johnson is in his third season with the Browns, during which time he has seen 50 touches for 290 yards.
And 40 of those touches were rushing, putting up 199 yards on the ground with those 40 rushing attempts.
This season, he’s seen minimal work behind Chubb and Hunt and has recorded three rushes for 11 yards, as well as a seven-yard reception.
D’Ernest Johnson Rushing Yards Odds
- OVER 60.5 -115
- UNDER 60.5 -115
For his career, Johnson is averaging 4.975 yards per rush attempt, although it’s difficult to credit him with that, given his limited sample size.
At his alma mater, the University of South Florida, Johnson was a four-year player, who in his final season with the Bulls, averaged 4.1 yards per rush attempt.
The Browns will be very banged up on the offensive side of the ball. They will be without QB Baker Mayfield under center after he aggravated a shoulder injury, so Case Keenum will get the start.
In addition, they were forced to face the Arizona Cardinals in Week 6 without left tackle Jedrick Wills and right tackle Jack Conklin.
Conklin and Wills are both listed on the Browns’ injury report coming into this game. The Browns did not practice on Monday, but even if they did, the two of them would not have been able to participate, according to the report.
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The absence of consistent play on both sides of the offensive line could put a damper on Johnson’s production, as far as the O/U’s at online sportsbooks are concerned.
D’Ernest Johnson Longest Rushing Yards Odds
- OVER 14.5 -115
- UNDER 14.5 -115
D’Ernest Johnson has had a rush attempt go over 14.5 yards in his career, in 2020 against the Dallas Cowboys, a game in which Chubb and Hunt combined for 17 carries and Johnson saw 13.
That rush took him 28 yards downfield and he finished the game as the leading rusher for the Browns with 95 yards.
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski praised Johnson and mentioned how useful he was during the 2020 NFL season.
“You guys saw D’Ernest in there last season at times, and he was very dependable and he was very accountable,” said Stefanski, per 92.3 The Fan.
“Broke some long runs for us. Can really catch the ball. Similar to the earlier question, I have a ton of faith in D’Ernest, just like all of these guys who may be called upon.”
The Cleveland Browns take on the Denver Broncos for Thursday Night Football. The game kicks off at 8:20 p.m. EST and will be broadcast on FOX and the NFL Network.
Maxwell joined the USAOnlineSportsbooks team in 2019. He focuses on creating sports betting content that informs and educates. He focuses on the NBA, the NFL, College Football and Basketball, and whatever else comes across his desk.
