Cleveland Browns running back Trent Richardson has been battling a rib injury, but Brown coach Pat Shurmur said on Thursday that the rookie is getting better in practice and should be ready for this Sunday's game against the San Diego Chargers (via Cleveland.com):
"Trent (Richardson) had a good day of practice yesterday. He did a lot of work and you just do as much as you can to get them as good and as ready as they can be for 1:00 on Sunday."
Shurmur also said that compared to last week, Richardson looked much better overall:
"Yeah, he did way more yesterday than he did last Wednesday."
Richardson tried to play with the pain last Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, but the results were not successful. He rushed for just 8 yards on eight carries before aggravating the injury in the second quarter. He wound up sitting for the remainder of the game.
Richardson has had an up-and-down rookie season, with several strong performances interspersed with lackluster efforts and the injuries. His best overall game came Sept. 16 against the Cincinnati Bengals, when he rushed for 109 yards and one score to go along with 36 receiving yards and a touchdown. That was also the Browns' only win so far this season.
Cleveland and San Diego are set to kick off at 1:00 p.m. ET this Sunday.