Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns pits plenty of former teammates against each other. College allegiances turned NFL foe. DL Derrick Harmon and QB Dillon Gabriel are a well-known one, teammates last season at Oregon. EDGE Jack Sawyer and RB Quinshon Judkins are another, together at Ohio State and now squaring off this weekend.
Speaking to reporters Friday, Sawyer offered a glowing scouting report of Judkins.
“He’s explosive. He’s big. He’s physical. He runs hard,” Sawyer said via 93.7 The Fan.Â
Judkins has showed why he was the Browns’ second-round pick. And why he was worth the wait. Off-field issues combined with delayed contract talks prevented him from signing until the day before the regular season started. Judkins missed the season opener but suited up Week 2 and hasn’t looked back. He quickly wrested the starting role away from veteran Jerome Ford and fellow rookie Dylan Sampson and has become one of the NFL’s most impactful rookies.
Through four games, Judkins has 72 carries for 347 yards, a healthy 4.8 yards per carry, and two rushing touchdowns. Over half his runs have been successful and nearly 30 percent have resulted in first downs. Among rookies, only Ashton Jeanty has more rushing yards than Judkins, 349 versus 347, and Jeanty played in an extra game.
“I think the key is to keep him contained,” Sawyer said of Judkins. “As much as we can. When you’re facing a good player, slow him down as much as you can.”
Rallying and getting hats on Judkins will be key. It’ll take more than one person to bring him down. The tone of the game could be felt in the pile. Does it move forward or backward? Forward means the Browns are getting yards after contact and winning the line of scrimmage. Backward means Pittsburgh is bringing the physicality. Stopping the run and asking more of Gabriel at quarterback is an obvious key to win the game. But it’s easier said than done.
