Cleveland Browns: Joe Thomas remains the gold standard

Cleveland Browns left tackle Joe Thomas has set a standard of play at left tackle that shows no signs of diminishing any time soon.

Much like large parts of downtown Cleveland, the Cleveland Browns offensive line will be under construction once training camp opens on July 29.

With the loss of Alex Mack and Mitchell Schwartz in free agency, at least 40 percent of the line will be new come the fall – and this is John Greco holds off the challenge for his starting spot at right guard.

One area the Browns do not have to worry about is at left tackle, where nine-time Pro Bowler Joe Thomas has been the gold standard since 2007.

While there was a lot of talk early in the off-season that the Browns should simply trade away their unquestionably best player, cooler heads in Berea prevailed as the Browns realized that having a veteran presence like Thomas on the line is a good thing.

“Joe Thomas is the leader of that group, and he’s done a great job,” head coach Hue Jackson told the team’s website. “I told them in front of him, we’re going to get on his back and we’re going to ride it. We’re going to ride that group to wherever we are going to go. They’re kind of the backbone of how we do things. The quarterback drives the train, but the line is what makes us go.”

As he prepares for his 10th season, Thomas is still as good as ever as he was named as the fourth-best offensive player in the AFC by Pro Football Focus (think about that for a moment):

"While the LT position isn’t flashy and doesn’t iibute to wins like a skill position can, not having a good LT can derail an entire offense. With Joe Thomas, the Browns haven’t had to worry about the most important position on the offensive line since 2007. Thomas has allowed 26 sacks in nine years—that’s fewer than three sacks per season—and considering the massive turnover at the quarterback position, it’s impressive that the number is that low. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft, Eric Fisher (Chiefs), has allowed 19 sacks in three seasons and could pass Thomas in sacks allowed by the end of 2016. While Thomas gets a lot of praise for his pass-blocking prowess, his run-blocking is very underrated."

Taking a league-wide view, PFF also tapped Thomas as the 11th-best player in all of the NFL:

"Joe Thomas has been the benchmark of pass-protecting left tackles since he entered the league, and shows no sign of relinquishing that crown anytime soon, even if there are at least rivals to his throne. Thomas has led the league in pass-protection grade in four of the past five seasons, and has usually had an excellent run-blocking grade to pair with that, despite quarterbacks that haven’t always been a friend to their offensive linemen in terms of hanging onto the ball or dancing around the pocket. Despite nine seasons in the league, Thomas shows no sign of slowing down, and his 2015 season was one of his best. Everybody wants to anoint Tyron Smith as the league’s best tackle because he plays on a better team and offensive line overall, but for the moment, Joe Thomas still has that crown by a whisker."

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Given that he is about to play for his sixth head coach since entering the league, it would be easy for Thomas to want nothing to do with yet another rebuilding project.

But that is not his way.

“I think by the time that I got to meet Hue Jackson and talk with Sashi Brown about the direction that they want things headed and see the assistant coaches that were being hired, those were the things that said I can get excited about this,” Thomas told the team’s website. “Since I got here, my goal has always been to turn the Browns into a winner consistently and I think he’s just the man for it.”

Thomas has been the gold standard not only for offensive line play but for the Browns as well during the past nine seasons.

Next: Corey Coleman can't be one-dimensional

The only thing left to do is for the Browns to reward all that hard work by making sure that this time the rebuilding effort finally works.

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