10 greatest Cleveland Browns of all time

CLEVELAND, OH – SEPTEMBER 27: Joe Thomas #73 of the Cleveland Browns blocks against the Oakland Raiders during a game at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 27, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Raiders defeated the Browns 27-20. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

3. T Joe Thomas

It started out well. The Cleveland Browns used the third overall pick in 2007 to grab tackle Joe Thomas, a standout at the University of Wisconsin. The team would enjoy a solid 10-6 campaign but did fall short of the postseason. But that was as much success as the team has had since.

Thomas would play nine more complete seasons with the club but it would all end after seven games in 2017. He would earn Pro Bowl invites in each of his first 10 seasons in the league and over that span was named All-Pro six times.

Via the Cleveland Browns (and courtesy of NFL.com), the massive tackle would play a total of a total of 10,363 offensive plays in 10-plus seasons before a triceps injury vs. the Tennessee Titans put him on the sidelines.

Thomas – now an NFL analyst (via Scott Patsko of Cleveland.com) – was obviously a real iron man when it came to the game and his numbers are simply amazing. He basically never left the field when it came to the offense until that aforementioned injury forced him to the sidelines and inevitably he opted for retirement. It’s hard to believe he won’t be a first ballot Hall of Fame selection and a member of the Class of 2023.