Cleveland Browns: Joe Thomas comes to Takkarist McKinley’s defense

Cleveland Browns left tackle Joe Thomas is a respected name all across the NFL, and continued to make his voice heard during the NFL Draft.

In a recent interview with In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Joe Thomas went in depth about many topics, which included a notable anecdote detailing his thought process in not attending the 2007 NFL Draft.

It is customary for top draft picks to be invited to the draft and participate in the festivities. Players get to participate in a variety of activities culminating in a red carpet event and an opportunity to take the stage with the commissioner when their name is called.

Thomas, who has been outspoken about a lot lately, again took the opportunity to take a jab at the league. His comments about not going were as follows:

"“The idea of going to New York for five days and kinda being paraded around by the NFL as they make money off your every step, and the whole purpose is just for publicity for me to stand there in a suit and go, ‘Look at me everybody!’… That sounds horrible.”“The idea of going to New York for five days and kinda being paraded around by the NFL as they make money off your every step, and the whole purpose is just for publicity for me to stand there in a suit and go, ‘Look at me everybody!’… That sounds horrible.”"

When he informed the NFL of his decision to skip out and instead go fishing with his father, they were not happy:

"“It started turning into, ‘The teams are gonna think you’re a prima donna and they’re not gonna wanna draft you anymore because you’re shunning the draft’… to try to coerce me into showing up to the draft. And I really thank my agent, Peter Schaffer, for just being real upfront about it and saying, ‘Look, these guys are just BS’ing you. There’s just doing what they can to try to get you there, because they need the actors for their TV show…’ And they get all these players to show up for free and they become part of the soap opera of the NFL, which is great for some guys… But then there’s the guy that just plummets in the draft and he’s there sweating it out. He’s got five cameras in his face.”“It started turning into, ‘The teams are gonna think you’re a prima donna and they’re not gonna wanna draft you anymore because you’re shunning the draft’… to try to coerce me into showing up to the draft. And I really thank my agent, Peter Schaffer, for just being real upfront about it and saying, ‘Look, these guys are just BS’ing you. There’s just doing what they can to try to get you there, because they need the actors for their TV show…’ And they get all these players to show up for free and they become part of the soap opera of the NFL, which is great for some guys… But then there’s the guy that just plummets in the draft and he’s there sweating it out. He’s got five cameras in his face.”"

Given his comments, it is safe to say that Thomas is sympathetic to young superstar NFL prospects. From his point of view, players that are invited to the draft are being pressured into a gauntlet of exploitation. So when an over excited Takkarist McKinley let an unsavory word slip Thursday night after being drafted, Thomas was the first to back him up.

Referring to a Pro Football Talk article by Mike Florio, Thomas had this to say on Twitter:

This is why Joe Thomas is a fan favorite. Whether or not it is in line with the interests of the league, he is not afraid to speak up on certain issues. McKinley was just an excited kid celebrating the realization of his dreams. The league should be grateful that he would even attend their event.

Next: Browns select DeShone Kizer No. 52 overall

The decision of whether NFL officials decide to fine McKinley remains to be seen. Either way he at least has one veteran player in his corner. Don’t be surprised if Thomas steps up and pays if a fine does ensue.