There doesn’t appear to be any animosity between the Cleveland Browns star playmakers — quite the opposite, in fact.
Wide receiver Amari Cooper spent some serious coin to welcome running back Nick Chubb back into the fold following months of surgeries and rehabilitation on his severely injured knee. The gift came in the form of a diamond-encrusted Batman symbol, which on the back read: “Batman Returns.”
The Browns official X account shared a short clip from Chubb showing off the present over the weekend.
“This is too hard 😮💨,” Cleveland’s social media team wrote in the caption. “@AmariCooper9 blessed @NickChubb with the Batman ice 🥶.”
Nick Chubb’s Batman Origin Story Stretches Back to First Serious Knee Injury
GettyRunning back Nick Chubb of the Cleveland Browns.
Chubb’s affiliation with Batman began after the first catastrophic injury of his career in 2015, while he was a collegiate player at the University of Georgia. After blowing out his knee, Chubb gained inspiration from the film, “The Dark Knight Rises,” the third in director Christopher Nolan’s trilogy about the superhero, starring actor Christian Bale as the title character.
According to a piece authored by Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal in late December 2020, a line from the film’s primary villain Bane — portrayed by actor Tom Hardy — and delivered to the Batman character resonated with Chubb.
“Victory has defeated you,” Bane said.
“I remember I was like on top of the world, coming off a good [freshman] season, feeling myself, doing good in everything, and he said that, and I feel like he was talking to me,” Chubb told Ulrich.
The motivation Chubb took from the film, and from that line in particular, stuck. Eventually, so did the nickname.
Amari Cooper, Nick Chubb May Face Very Different Futures With Browns
GettyCleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Now, more than eight years later, Chubb has to find away to rise again — just as he did following his injury at Georgia before going on to become a second-round pick of the Browns and a four-time Pro Bowler in the NFL.
This time in Chubb’s career has been made more tumultuous by the fact that he was entering the final campaign of a three-year contract worth $36.6 million in 2024 before agreeing to a restructured deal to remain in Cleveland. Chubb, who may not be healthy enough to start the season for the Browns, is now playing on a contract valued at just $2.275 million. The RB can earn back all the money he gave up through incentives, though that will be difficult if injury limits his time on the field.
Meanwhile, Cooper is entering the final season of a five-year deal worth $100 million that he originally signed with the Dallas Cowboys in 2020. The Browns owe Cooper $20 million in salary in 2024, and he carries a cap hit of $23.7 million.
Given his cap hit and his stellar play over two seasons in Cleveland, Cooper is a strong candidate for an extension that will guarantee him considerably more money over a multiyear deal while simultaneously lessening his financial hit to the team.
Those circumstances have the potential to breed contempt between two players who have both mattered a great deal to the Browns offense — especially when one is lined up to get paid while the other, more tenured, member of the organization is playing for his job at a massive discount.
But jealousy is clearly not the case in Cleveland between Cooper and Chubb, which bodes well for team’s prospects as a playoff contender this season.
Like Heavy.com’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy.com
The post Browns Star Gifts RB Nick Chubb Expensive Homecoming Present appeared first on Heavy.com.