Cleveland Browns running back Dontrell Hilliard views himself as the key person to gain from the Duke Johnson trade.
The Browns sent Johnson to the Houston Texans last week for a conditional 2020 fourth-round pick. Now Hilliard, 24, believes he'll benefit from the vacancy in the backfield.
Via Antony Poisal in ClevelandBrowns.com:
“I feel real comfortable,” Hilliard said. “Anytime my number is called, I can be the guy, so I have no doubt in my mind I can fill a more important role. It’s a competitive game, and that move they made opened an opportunity for me, and I’m going to take advantage of it.”
“It’s no more pressure,” Hilliard said. “I see the game more and learned more of the game. I spent time this offseason to kind of focus on the detailed small things and protection wise. I have a little knowledge of the game now.”
Hilliard, signed as an undrafted free agent out of Tulane in 2018, appeared in 11 games last season for the Browns, where he primarily served as a return specialist. He averaged 24.0 yards per kickoff return in 11 returns for 264 yards. Additionally, Hilliard made nine receptions for 105 receiving yards in 2018.
Hilliard has plenty of competition in the backfield, however. Nick Chubb, the 23-year-old former second-round pick of the club's, headlines the running back corps for the Browns. Cleveland also signed much-maligned RB Kareem Hunt, who was released by the Kansas City Chiefs following a domestic violence charge. Hunt will be suspended the first eight games of the season.
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