Cleveland rookie running back Trent Richardson turned in a legendary performance Sunday, and was congratulated by a legend for it.
Richardson was greeted after the game by Hall of Famer Jim Brown, putting aside some of the previous criticisms that made their relationship a chilly one.
The man who Brown called “ordinary” back in the spring turned in a Brown-like 24 carries for 122 yards and the only touchdown in a 7-6 win over the Chargers.
“That’s my partner, man,” Brown said, via Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com. “He never took anything I said the wrong way. He’s interested in his family. He’s interested in his team.
“He’s hurt and he performed in a way that he didn’t have to. It’s an attitude. He did that for his team.”
Richardson’s game as he recovered from a rib injury showed toughness, but so did the Browns as a whole.
They played turnover-free football on a raw, rainy, windy Cleveland afternoon.
“I’m still thawing out,” Richardson said. “[Teammates] said it’s not even cold yet. Felt cold to me. This is football weather.”
And Richardson looked like a football player in it, like Brown did so many years ago.