The Cleveland Browns will have one of their veterans back on the field this season.
Joel Bitonio wasn’t a lock to return after last season, but he chose to run it back in Cleveland again.
When asked about that, the offensive lineman said that Kevin Stefanski’s offensive gameplan this season was a big part of his decision to return.
“That was the main thing. He said, ‘We’re going to run the ball, use play-action, and take care of the ball on offense while letting our defense make big plays for us.’ If you look back at 2023, the ball control we had on offense — even though we took our shots and made our plays — meant our defense only had to play about 55 snaps a game. When they’re not on the field that much, it’s a good thing for us. Joe [Flacco] is a stud. He’s seen it all. He brings calmness — ‘Cool Joe’ — to the team. The way he works and goes about his day lifts everybody in that locker room. We have a lot of trust in him. We’ve obviously had success with him, and I think we can recreate that.”
Joel Bitonio told me that he decided to return to the Cleveland Browns because they were getting back to Kevin Stefanski’s offense.
… and Joe Flacco 👀pic.twitter.com/oT9QsjimGp
— Nick Pedone (@NickPedone12) September 2, 2025
The Browns used to have one of the most consistent offensive lines in the game, and it excelled at creating gaps for the running game.
That wasn’t the case last season, as an assistant coaching change and different blocking schemes hindered the unit.
However, now they will return to what they did under assistant Bill Callahan with Mike Bloomgren now in that spot, and with the players back to full strength, expectations are high.
The Browns need to make sure to keep Flacco out of harm’s way.
He’s never been the most mobile quarterback, and that’s not going to change now that he’s 40 years old.
They need to give him a clean pocket, and good things will happen more often than not.
As for the running game, not having rookie Quinshon Judkins available is obviously a big blow to their plans and aspirations, at least early on in the season.
Jerome Ford and Dylan Sampson should be able to keep the chains moving while they sort out Judkins’ contract situation and possible NFL suspension.
Whatever the case, it’s good to have Bitonio back, and hopefully, he’ll stay for a while longer.
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