PITTSBURGH — As Nick Chubb sat on a cart and waited to be ferried off the field during “Monday Night Football” at Acrisure Stadium, many Browns teammates and Pittsburgh Steelers opponents approached him and shook his hand.

Despite the devastating knee injury Chubb had suffered, he actually smiled for a moment before medical personnel carted him away, perhaps because of the respect and support he immediately received from both franchises. Some Browns players even rushed onto the field from the sideline to console Chubb, a four-time Pro Bowl running back.

With 14:14 remaining in the second quarter of the Browns' 26-22 loss to the AFC North rival Steelers, the way Chubb's left knee bent immediately suggested he'll be out for the rest of the season. Linebacker Cole Holcomb had Chubb wrapped up high as safety Minkah Fitzpatrick crashed into the side of his left leg during a 5-yard run on first-and-goal at the Pittsburgh 8-yard line.

After the game, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski acknowledged Chubb is done for the season.

“Obviously, Nick's got a very significant knee injury," Stefanski said. "You feel for the person. He's a great football player as we know, but he's an even better person. We will support him every step along the way.”

Browns teammates left 'speechless' after season-ending injury to Nick Chubb

The reactions of Chubb's teammates could best be summed up by that of All-Pro left guard Joel Bitonio.

"Speechless, really," Bitonio said. "I mean, the guy works harder than anybody I know. He does everything right. Just real, real, real s***** for him.

"At first, I didn't even know he was down. I saw the Pittsburgh guy down, and I turned around and [Chubb] was still down. Just heartbroken for him, honestly. Just does everything right, works so hard, couldn't ask for a better teammate, couldn't ask for a better person. So, obviously, we're going to miss that, and it's tough to see him go down like that."

Jerome Ford 'hurt seeing somebody work their ass off' suffer an injury

"I'm just hoping that he OK, and then getting up and seeing that he not OK," said Jerome Ford, who replaced Chubb on the next play after the injury and scored on a 3-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Deshaun Watson. "It kind of hurt seeing somebody work their ass off, offseason, in season. The way he worked, he like, man, he deserve it all. He deserves success that he had, and see him go down like that kind of hurts."

Ford rushed for 106 yards on 16 carries in Chubb's absence. He also set up a Pierre Strong Jr.'s touchdown run in the third quarter with a 69-yard run to the Steelers 1.

Dawand Jones, Amari Cooper see 'tragedy' in Nick Chubb's loss

"You pray for the man, him and his family," rookie right tackle Dawand Jones said. "You see it happened, (Jack Conklin) go down last week, not repeat, but it's similar things. It's just sad. There's some things you can't control. It's just one of them. It's definitely tough to move on. I looked up at the scoreboard, even seen the clip of him getting hit and it just gruesome. You hear them and hear a voice in the back of your head and it just makes you want to keep going."

"Obviously it's a huge loss," wide receiver Amari Cooper said. "Nick is like the engine of the team. You know what I mean? The best player on the team. Yeah, what I mean, tragic. Very unfortunate. I'm very sad for Nick, sad for this team. Losing Nick, not only is it not ideal, but it's just a tragedy."

Nick Chubb hurt same knee in college with Georgia football

As a University of Georgia sophomore, Chubb suffered three torn ligaments in the same knee on Oct. 10, 2015, against the University of Tennessee. The anterior cruciate ligament remained intact, but Chubb still needed surgery on the other three ligaments. He returned to action in time for the 2016 opener and eventually became a second-round draft pick (No. 35 overall) of the Browns in 2018.

When Chubb suffered the injury Monday night, the Pittsburgh crowd let out a collective gasp when the replay of the play was shown on the scoreboard.

Steelers have 'much respect' for the man they call 'Mr. Chubb'

“I can't watch those replays," Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt said. "I just heard the crowd reaction, and obviously you could see it in his face. [Chubb is an] absolutely phenomenal player. I have so much respect for him as a football player.

“We see him twice a year … and he's called Mr. Chubb for a reason in our building. I have so much respect for him, and I hope he's all right. I wish him a speedy recovery.”

Seeing Chubb sidelined in such a brutal way was difficult for the Steelers, too.

“That's tough, man, because he's just not any player in the NFL,” Steelers edge rusher Markus Golden said. “He's one of the guys, man, that you hear about a lot. You hear a lot of good things. You just watch him on film, and going against him, you've just got to respect and love the way he plays the game.

“Much respect for him. I'm praying for him. I hope he gets better, man. But, yes, that's a tough loss for the NFL. I don't know what's going on with him. I don't know if he's OK, but I hope he's OK, and I'm praying for him.”

Cleveland Browns column: Dawand Jones holds his own vs. T.J. Watt, but there were lessons in loss to Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers defensive end Larry Ogunjobi, a teammate of Chubb for three seasons with the Browns, said, “I'm praying for my dog. I hate to see it for him. Amazing player. Amazing person. I'm wishing him the best.”

Steelers edge rusher Alex Highsmith noted he expected the Browns to pass more without Chubb, but his initial thoughts were sympathetic. Steelers fans cheered for Chubb while he was carted off the field.

“You hate to see that happen to a guy like that,” Highsmith said. “The NFL's a brotherhood, so just all of my prayers go to him that everything would be positive, everything would be good. ... He's one of the best in league at what he does, so you hate seeing that."

Cleveland Browns takeaways: Deshaun Watson remains confident despite bad breaks against Pittsburgh Steelers

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns, Steelers players react to Nick Chubb's season-ending injury