BEREA, Ohio -- Trent Richardson clawed his way back from a knee scope to play in the opener last season and then gutted it out the second half of the year with broken ribs.

When all was said and done, he missed one game his rookie year, the season finale in Pittsburgh with an ankle injury. So don't slap that dreaded label on Richardson that all tough guys who play through pain absolutely hate.

"Injury-prone is not going to be me,'' Richardson said after sitting out organized team activities for the second straight week with a strained muscle in his lower right leg. "I'm feeling good and I just can’t wait to get back up and running. When people say stuff about being injury-prone, I think it’s just a mindset, and I know that’s not me.''

Richardson, who might miss the mandatory minicamp Tuesday through Thursday, stressed that he's still running and would be practicing if the team would let him. Doing leg lifts off to the side is really not his style. Running through walls and bruising defenders is.

"It’s terrible (sitting out), man,'' he said. "But I know in my mind -- everybody knows -- that it’s not going to be near like last year, being hurt and injured. Ain't no biggie. Ain’t nothing to worry about. I could be out there, but they want to be cautious about it and just make sure I’m healthy when it’s time to be right for camp.''

Cleveland Browns practice, May 30, 2013 13 Gallery: Cleveland Browns practice, May 30, 2013

The Browns don't want a repeat of last season, when Richardson missed the preseason schedule after arthroscopic knee surgery Aug. 9 to remove a piece of loose cartilage. They want their workhorse to carry the load beginning Sept. 8 against the Dolphins.

So when Richardson felt some pain in the leg last week, they sounded the caution bell.

"It happened during a practice (but) I really don't know how,'' he said. "I was just running and you just feel it sometimes. It wasn't that serious (to need an MRI). They just felt around on it and it was like ‘we’re going to sit you out for now because we don’t want anything to happen to you as far as not being able to play in the season.'''

Coach Rob Chudzinski said Richardson is "coming along'' but that they'll wait until early next week to decide if he'll participate in the minicamp.

"We're being conservative,'' said Chudzinski. “I’m not concerned. I know he's healthy from all the things from this past season. This is just something that we are working through and he'll be fine.”

Richardson plans to work out back home in Pensacola, Fla., where he'll also check in with surgeon Dr. James Andrews, who has a clinic there.

"The (Browns) are going to make sure I’m doing the right thing,'' Richardson said. "Other than that, I’m going to be working on the beach, running up sand dunes and doing whatever (one of his high school coaches and mentors Derrick Boyd) has written up for me.”

He doesn't want to miss any training camp this season, especially not with the installation of a new offense.

"Oh, yeah. It’s a big thing,'' he said. "(But) I’m still learning as far as the intangibles I need to know. I know the basic stuff, and I’m still learning every day.''

Richardson received a call early on from offensive coordinator Norv Turner telling him he'd be his bell cow.

"I tell him I’m going to be in the best shape I can be to make sure I can lead this team or put this team on my back every day,'' said Richardson.

Richardson has already talked to some of the other backs Turner has coached. It hasn't been lost on Richardson that Turner's system has produced the NFL's leading rusher five times with three players: Emmett Smith, Ricky Williams and LaDainian Tomlinson.

"I talk to Emmitt Smith a lot,'' he said. "I talked to LT. I just talk to different people that have been in his system, Michael Irvin. They're really just telling me 'this is the offense for you, for real.'''

Richardson is also excited to have the great Jim Brown working with him now in an advisory capacity.

"It's an honor just to be in the same building as him,'' Richardson said. "It’s a big plus and I’m happy to have him. That’s Jim Brown. I don’t care what people say about him. He’s always going to be a legend and he’s always going to be that guy I always look up to and he’s always going to be an icon.”

If Brown has any advice on how Richardson can stay healthy and still punish defenders, he'll be all ears.

"If Jim Brown says something, that’s always something you have to put in your head,'' Richardson said. "Hey, this man did it. He knows what he’s talking about, so I might as well follow along and get on the right path and do what he tells me to do to make sure I stay injury free.”