Browns RB Kareem Hunt cleared to practice during NFL suspension

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — The Browns came back from their bye week with Kareem Hunt.

The suspended running back is practicing with teammates for the first time since August after being cleared to return by the NFL while serving the final two games of his eight-game ban for two violent off-field altercations.

Hunt previously was prohibited from being at the team’s facility, but the league has allowed him to return.

“We have been monitoring his progress during the suspension,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in an email to The Associated Press. “He is permitted to return to team activities, including practice. He is not permitted to play in or attend games until after the team’s eighth game. The time with the team enables him to reacclimate himself and engage in conditioning work and practices.”

The 24-year-old Hunt is not eligible to play until Nov. 10, when the Browns host the Buffalo Bills.

Hunt looked agile during drills in the portion of the workout open to media. He underwent surgery on a sports hernia on Aug. 29.

While he was with Kansas City, Hunt was caught on video pushing and kicking a woman during an argument in a Cleveland hotel. The Chiefs released the 2017 league rushing champion following the incident and the Browns signed him in February.

The league suspended him for violating its personal-conduct policy.

Hunt has been receiving counseling since joining the Browns, who were hoping his relationship with general manager John Dorsey would keep him out of further trouble. Dorsey drafted Hunt when he was the Chiefs’ GM.

Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield returned to practice after resting a bruised left hip last week. Mayfield got hurt when he got hit while scrambling in a loss to Seattle.