Carlos Hyde to sign a 3-year deal with the Browns in NFL free agency

One of the top running back targets in this year’s NFL free agency, former Ohio State bulldozer Carlos Hyde is expected to sign a three-year deal with the Cleveland Browns, according to Ian Rapoport. There wasn’t much chatter during the beginning of the “legal tampering period” of free agency about the back, but there was little doubt that the Buckeye would end up with a solid deal coming off of his rookie contract.

Since heading to the NFL in 2014, Hyde’s career hasn’t exactly been simple. Not only did he see three different head coaches in his first four seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, but he also suffered a string of injuries that kept him sidelined for at least some portion of each of his first three years in the league. Playing under the last year of his rookie deal, Hyde finally stayed healthy and put up a career-best performance in 2017, showing that he was worthy of a multi-year deal.

Despite finishing the 2016 season on IR, it was Hyde’s first season with over 1,000 total offensive yards (1,151) in just 13 games. He followed that up with 1,288 total yards in 2017, in addition to a career-high eight rushing touchdowns.

The Buckeye saw additional short passes last season, and was a major component of the Niners offense. With Kyle Shanahan taking over in 2017, there was a shift in the culture in San Francisco, and Hyde was a much bigger feature than in years past. His injury history does give cause for concern, but ultimately his well-rounded abilities make him well worth the risk.