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CLEVELAND -- With every game, every carry, Nick Chubb puts a little distance between himself and a moment that changed him.
On Sunday, he'll return to where it happened. The full circle.
More than a year since the Cleveland running back's left knee was obliterated on a trap play near the goal line in Pittsburgh, Chubb will be back in Acrisure Stadium for the first time since suffering an injury that could have ended his career.
Reserved and reticent, Chubb rarely shows emotion, let alone open up about his feelings during interview sessions. However, he said this week that going back to the Steelers' home field had extra significance.
"It's a divisional game, so for me that's enough for me to get excited about, but I'd be lying if I said I haven't thought about it, going back to that place where it happened last year," he said on a Zoom call. "But besides that, I'm always excited to play the Steelers."
In Week 2 last season, Chubb's knee and career nearly collapsed at the same time.
On what began as a routine inside handoff, Chubb was cutting when his left knee was hit from the side on a low tackle by Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The damage was extensive: torn ligaments, meniscus and medial capsule tears.
After undergoing two surgeries, Chubb, who injured the same knee in college at Georgia, attacked his rehab and returned to Cleveland's lineup in Week 7. He scored a touchdown in his first game back against Cincinnati on Oct. 20.
Then, two weeks ago, Chubb played against the Steelers for the first time in what became almost storybook.
With falling snow providing a scenic backdrop, Chubb ran inside on a play that looked eerily like the one on which he got hurt, darting two yards for his second TD with 57 seconds left to give the Browns a 24-19 win.
Chubb didn't speak to reporters after the game, perhaps downplaying his comeback so as not to steal the spotlight after the rivalry win.
Whatever the case, his teammates said the performance lifted Chubb and everyone around him.
"I know it means a lot to him. He won't say it, but it's true," defensive end Myles Garrett said. "I'll say it, because at this time last year we were sick to our stomachs and it hurt to have his family hurting and have to see that.
"For him to come back and be pivotal in this game just speaks to the kind of resilience and the man that he is, and we absolutely love him."
-- The Associated Press