By Nate Ulrich
The Akron Beacon Journal
CLEVELAND — Many fans wanted the Browns to cut Isaiah Crowell amid controversy this past summer.
Some still do.
Reporters questioned whether the stress created by the situation would suffocate Crowell and render him ineffective on the field.
Coach Hue Jackson conceded it was possible.
But Crowell has gone to great lengths to atone for his graphically violent anti-police post on Instagram. And in the midst of redeeming himself off the field, the third-year running back has been dominating on it.
Crowell is the top reason the 0-4 Browns have the NFL’s No. 1-ranked rushing offense (149.3 yards per game) as they prepare to host the 3-1 New England Patriots on Sunday. He has rushed 61 times for 394 yards (6.5 average) and three touchdowns. He’s second in the league in rushing yards and first in average yards per carry.
“I’ve been through a lot of stuff, and I’ve gotten through it, so I knew this would just be something that I have to get through,” Crowell said Thursday, speaking about the off-field adversity he created for himself. “I have to make right, and people still have their opinion about me or about the situation. But I knew that I would get through it, and on the field, I didn’t feel like it would affect me.”
Crowell has issued countless apologies, donated his first game check worth about $35,000 to the Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation and attended the funeral of slain policeman Patrick Zamarripa in an effort to make amends for posting an illustration of a masked man slashing the throat of an officer. He posted it in July after police in Louisiana and Minnesota fatally shot black men Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and before five officers in Dallas were killed by a gunman during a protest march.
The Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation recently received the donation Crowell vowed to make.
“Everything’s been positive,” Crowell said of the feedback he’s received from people in Dallas. “That’s just something that I wanted to do because I said that’s what I was going to do. I wanted to be a man of my word.”
Sgt. Demetrick Pennie, president of the Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation, has formed a bond with Crowell. He’s the one who invited Crowell to the funeral and went out of his way to educate the player about law enforcement.
“We’ve got a real good relationship,” Crowell said. “When everything happened, he called me and we just built the relationship from there. He supports me and he gave me the outlook on just the different police he showed me, what they do and what they represent. He just told me he don’t support any bad police, either. So we met eye to eye on that, and he just gave me a whole different outlook, and I respect him for that and I appreciate that.”
Jackson admitted the Browns were concerned initially about whether they could have Crowell on the team after what he did.
“My first conversation with him, he called me,” Jackson said. “That made a difference to me as far as just I could tell that he knew that he had crossed a line and did something that was wrong,” Jackson said. “To me, that is the first sign. I didn’t have to chase the player. The player chased me to let me know that he had made a huge mistake in judgment.
“We all make mistakes sometimes, and there are mistakes that are unforgivable, and there are some that you work through. I think it was a legitimate mistake by him. I think he has owned up to that, he has taken responsibility for it and he has done the right thing since then.
“I can’t tell you the turmoil that he went through other than what he shared, but I know he was very remorseful about what happened. I know that he wanted to do everything he could to make amends. I think that he has done everything that has been asked of him, everything that has been expected of him and more.”
Crowell also has exceeded expectations on the field. Last season, he had 185 carries for 706 yards (3.8 average) and four touchdowns. As an undrafted rookie in 2014, he posted 148 carries for 607 yards (4.1 average) and eight touchdowns. Now he’s on pace to have 244 carries for 1,576 yards and 12 touchdowns.
“He is an excellent runner, excellent vision,” wide receiver Terrelle Pryor said. “Where he is at right now, I believe he is one of the best backs, if not the best right now, running it. I truly believe that because how hard he runs and he is so aggressive and just a smart football player. He picks up the blitzes, and I can’t say enough good things about Crow.”
Crowell said he lost about 7 or 8 pounds since last season, but he doesn’t believe he’s quicker than previous years. He attributes his success to Jackson featuring him more than the previous coaching staff did and those extra chances allowing him to find a rhythm. Crowell admitted he had been frustrated by his lack of carries in the past.
“I feel like I could’ve been doing this if I had opportunities like I have now,” Crowell said. “It gave me a lot of confidence to know that my coach believes in me and that he trusts me.”
The blocking scheme Jackson uses may be better suited for Crowell, too. Learning from former Browns running backs Earnest Byner, who helped coach the team through training camp, Kevin Mack and Jim Brown has helped him as well.
“I just wanted to understand the runs, understand where the blocking is going to be and just really be patient,” Crowell said. “I had a lot of runs in the previous years where I see the hole or I might trip up and not be able to hit the hole. So I feel like patience is the key.”
And after Crowell hits a hole, he’s focusing on being more aggressive than he was in his first two NFL seasons. He has forced 12 missed tackles this year, including eight in Sunday’s 31-20 loss to Washington, according to ProFootballFocus.com. He leads the NFL with 4.54 yards per carry after contact.
“He’s running the ball very violently right now,” guard Alvin Bailey said. “That’s what we like. That’s what we need. He’s doing some big-time running.”
Early in training camp, Jackson told his players the offense would have the NFL’s top-ranked rushing attack. Much of his faith had to do with Crowell and dynamic backup Duke Johnson.
“I’m not surprised by anything he is doing,” Jackson said of Crowell. “He is a tremendous football player, and he is only going to get better.”