In 2007, I was in third grade. In Westlake, Ohio, that meant the start of flag football and for me, it was the beginning of a nine-year football career. For the vast majority of that nine years, I stood on the left side of the offensive line. A position commonly called left tackle. Coincidently, the Cleveland Browns used their third overall pick that year to select an offensive tackle out of Wisconsin.
For nine seasons, I played tackle in Westlake and for eleven seasons, Joe Thomas played tackle in Cleveland for the Browns. For me and countless other young linemen in the Northeast Ohio area, Joe exemplified what it meant to be an offensive lineman. Showing his grit on countless occasions, playing through injuries and never once complaining. This letter is meant to thank him for being that role model.
I sat in my seat at First Energy Stadium as Joe Thomas took his 10,363rd consecutive snap, the last of his career. As I sat and waited while Joe was in the medical tent, my belief that he would return to the field never wavered. After seeing him play without ligaments and tissue in areas where it is meant to be, this was just going to be another situation like that I thought. Hue Jackson was going to call a timeout, and Joe would jog out of the tent and his streak would continue.
But that didn't happen. Joe went to the locker room and the game went on. For the first time since I was ten years old, someone not named Joe Thomas lined up at left tackle for the Cleveland Browns. I had not witnessed that ever before. Although my playing days had been over for two years now, I was hit with quite a bit more emotion than I expected. And now, Joe has retired from football. He will never again don his orange helmet and his number 73 jersey, and I don't believe I can accept that yet.
When I was in eighth grade, I needed to pick a jersey number. Keeping the number 73 fully in my mind, I selected 72. I didn't feel right taking that number, but the goal was to earn that right to wear it someday. My good friend Tommy Bowles did not feel that same inclination and selected 73 when we were freshmen. That turned out to be the perfect decision in the end.
Mitchell Schwartz was number 72 on the Cleveland Browns for a good number of seasons, and he played opposite Joe as the right tackle. For the Westlake Demons freshmen football team, you would see I, number 72 on the left side and number 73, Tommy Bowles, on the right. Flipped, but still just like Thomas and Schwartz. Joe and Mitch, if you read this, I thought you might like to hear the stories of two college sophomore who used to imitate you both in grade school.
Joe, thank you for all you've done for Cleveland. You and I know all about the losses and rebuilding. Who doesn't? My goal was to give you some insight on what you meant to your young fans. And I've only talked about the football side of things. That doesn't touch the work you've done off the field. If I may speak for all of your young fans, you are everything a young player should hope to become.
In addition to that, your dedication to our city, my home, was second to none. You didn't have to stay. You could've gone anywhere else and had a chance to win some games or make more money. Maybe even do both and win a Super Bowl at the same time. But you didn't. For that, as I told your wife to tell you after your final game, I thank you. Good luck and godspeed with whatever you choose to do for a career now. I'll see you in Canton.
