With the NFL trade deadline now less than two weeks away, some players on losing teams may be looking for a way to join a contender and compete for an elusive Super Bowl ring. Others may simply want to move on for a better playing-time opportunity elsewhere.
The former scenario has applied to the Cleveland Browns for most of their recent history, but not so much this year. The latter circumstance could have some appeal to Shedeur Sanders, who has been relegated to a backup quarterback without much hope of getting on the field without an injury to Deshaun Watson.
During 11 seasons with the Browns, Joe Thomas did not have a real chance to reach the Super Bowl. Cleveland never made the playoffs in that time, even with one of the top linemen of his generation.
Thomas recently revealed why he never asked for a trade away from the Browns, saying chasing success in Cleveland was more important than doing so anywhere else.
“I never did. I was always happy in Cleveland. I always felt a great pride in building something special. I always felt a great connection to the city of Cleveland. I loved the franchise, I loved the organization, and I wanted to do it there. To me, it wouldn’t have been worth doing if it wasn’t building something great in Cleveland and giving the fans that Super Bowl title,” Thomas said.
"I never did… I was always happy in Cleveland." — @joethomas73 says he never considered asking for a trade. pic.twitter.com/DvLEeThrrT
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) October 30, 2026
That sentiment is why Thomas remains a beloved figure for the franchise and the city. As every Browns fan knows, their favorite team is just one of four teams to never make it to the Super Bowl, along with the Detroit Lions, Houston Texans, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Cleveland had its chances decades ago with three AFC Championship Game appearances in the late 1980s, which was long before Thomas arrived as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. The Browns were 48-119 in Thomas’ 167 games played, which makes his dedication so much more admirable. The six-time All-Pro said that by the time he accepted the fact that he was never going to win a Super Bowl with Cleveland, he was at the end of his career and unable to physically contribute to another team.
Even without one playoff appearance, Thomas was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2023, rewarded as much for his loyalty to a beleaguered franchise as for his ability as one of the best offensive tackles in league history.
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