Joe Thomas Trivia Quiz

Answer: Yes

The third overall pick in the 2007 Draft was the Browns choosing Thomas. It was truly a product of its time, as the NFL dynamically began to shift in draft strategizing starting in the early 2010s, to the point where utility guys like Thomas, even elite as they might be, would not get looked at in the first round, especially the early first round, anywhere near as much.

Answer: 10,363

Thomas' career began in 2007 and ended after the conclusion of the 2017 season. From 2007 right up until late 2017, Joe Thomas never missed a single play. He was both an incredibly talented and durable lineman, so his play never warranted being removed from the field, he never got injured, and he was resilient and never needed to take a play off at any point.

Sadly, Thomas' prolific iron man stretch came to an end in one of the worst ways. In a 2017 game against the Tennessee Titans, Joe Thomas suffered a torn triceps injury in his right arm that ended his season and career. He would announce his retirement before the beginning of the 2018 season.

Answer: First Team All-Pro

The All-Pro Team consists of players named by the Associated Press, Pro Football Writers of America and The Sporting News for best general performance of that year. The AP consists of 50 panelists, PFWA consists of over 300 contributors, and The Sporting News consists of voting by players and executives.

In summation, one cannot become an All-Pro player without having truly earned it in the eyes of many, many highly qualified analysts, players and executives.

Answer: Yes

Thomas clocked in at #43, the second highest offensive tackle and third offensive lineman in general on the list. Thomas made it in just over Colts defensive end Robert Mathis (44) and was just behind Atlanta Falcons Runningback Michael Turner (42).

The rankings are based on an offseason poll organized by the NFL, where players vote on their peers based on their performance for the recent NFL season. In the year which Thomas appeared on the list, Tom Brady was crowned as the single best player in the entire NFL to the surprise of absolutely nobody.

Answer: 7

When Thomas signed the contract, it was the longest contract extension the Browns had ever given to a player at the time. It was also the most expensive contract in Cleveland history; this specific claim would be shattered, but even still, considering what Thomas would go on to do with Cleveland and what he had already achieved, it is difficult to argue that the Browns have ever handed out a contract extension to a more deserving player.

Answer: Jim Brown

At least in terms of physically playing football on the field, and not considering anything else, to be mentioned in the same breath as Jim Brown is quite the accomplishment. Jim Brown is a Hall of Fame runningback who set countless Cleveland Browns franchise records and, on the field specifically, was a living legend. Jim Brown played in nine consecutive Pro Bowls 1957-1965.

Worth noting, another Browns HOFer in Leroy Kelly was invited to five straight Pro Bowls (1966-1971) during his career, but he did not appear in all five and, thus, is not recognized as having been selected for five in a row.

Answer: 18th

Per these rankings, Joe Thomas was by far the best offensive lineman in the NFL, as the next highest was Washington's Trent Williams who appeared in 60th place. Humorously, however, he was not quite the highest played with the last name of Thomas on the list, being literally one spot beneath Seattle's Earl Thomas (played for them 2010-2018), a Safety who claimed the 17th spot. And just one spot higher than him was the highest Cleveland Brown on the entire list, wide receiver Josh Gordon at 16th (he played for the Browns 2012-2018).

Answer: No O-Lineman had ever been to eight Pro Bowls in a row

Joe Thomas became the first offensive lineman in all of NFL history to ever participate in eight straight Pro Bowls. This was in addition to yet another season in which Thomas played every single offensive snap of all sixteen games of the Browns season. And unfortunately for him, it was yet another season in which he was not going to be playing more than exactly sixteen games, as the Browns never actually came close to making the playoffs at any point during his career.

Answer: Yes

In 2023, his first year of eligibility (he retired at the end of the 2017 season), Thomas was easily inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Although Thomas never even played in a playoff game, much less on a team with a winning record, his individual accolades mounted throughout the course of his career, alongside his ridiculous iron man streak of over 10,000 offensive snaps. Though the voting was not literally unanimous, it's doubtful anybody actually seriously disagreed with the notion that Joe Thomas should make the Hall of Fame.

Answer: Analyst

Thomas joined the NFL Network in a myriad of different ways. He was a general analyst who could be found discussing games with other analysts before they happened. He teamed up with former teammate Andrew Hawkins to create an analytical podcast called "ThomaHawk." He would also go on to host a a Browns-specific written segment titled "Cup of Joe", found on the team's website.