Browns’ Richardson healthy, practicing

Associated Press

Berea

Trent Richardson’s second NFL season has already started better than his first.

Richardson, who battled injuries throughout his rookie year, reported to training camp healthy and has already been practicing with Cleveland’s rookies.

“Richardson has been full-go,” first-year Browns coach Rob Chudzinski said Monday. “He’s been practicing these last few days and looks good.”

That’s welcomed news for the Browns, who are counting on Richardson to be at full speed after he was kept out of spring practices with a shin injury and played most of last season with two broken ribs.

Despite not being close to 100 percent, Richardson, the No. 3 overall draft pick in 2012, started 15 games and rushed for 950 yards and 11 touchdowns last season. He also had 51 receptions for 367 yards and one TD.

Richardson’s injury problems carried into the offseason. He was sidelined from organized team activities in May by a strained muscle in his right shin. The Browns were overly cautious with Richardson, who promised he would be on the field for the first day of training camp.

He reported over the weekend along with other Cleveland players coming off injuries and a few veterans.

Richardson missed all of the exhibition season last year while recovering from knee surgery, and while he did all he could to stay up with his teammates off the field, the time away forced the former Alabama star to learn Cleveland’s offense on the fly when he returned.

Richardson injured his ribs in the Browns’ sixth game, but he continued to play and did not reveal that his ribs were broken until after the season. He missed Cleveland’s finale with a sprained ankle.