The news of Joel Bitonio’s retirement landed on Tuesday, and the reactions from inside the Browns locker room have been pouring in since the announcement came down. Running back Quinshon Judkins stepped to the microphone during mandatory minicamp and talked about what Bitonio meant to the Browns.
“I think Joel is one of the guys, when you look back at guys that started great things and are part of the culture here, just the way that he led with his actions and not just his words,” Judkins said.
"I think Joel is one of the guys, when you look back at guys that started great things and are part of the culture here…just the way that he led with his actions and not just his words." #Browns RB Quinshon Judkins on the impact that Joel Bitonio had on him/this team pic.twitter.com/X57g1WsfB8
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) June 10, 2026
Bitonio was never the loudest voice in the room. He was never the player making headlines with bold statements or generating controversy with his opinions. He was the player who showed up every single day, did his job at an elite level, and let the work speak for itself across 12 seasons and 178 starts without ever wearing another team’s uniform.
Judkins has only been in Cleveland for one season, but what he is describing is exactly the kind of standard that filters through an entire organization when the right people are in the building. Players who are new to a locker room notice the veterans who carry themselves differently, the ones who do not need to announce their presence because their presence is already felt in every meeting room and every walk to the practice field. Bitonio was that player in Cleveland for over a decade.
The cultural fingerprint Bitonio left behind is significant and should not be understated in the context of where this franchise is right now. Cleveland is in the middle of a genuine rebuild with a new head coach, a quarterback competition that is still being decided, and a roster that is trying to establish its own identity heading into 2026.
The foundation that players like Bitonio helped build through years of quiet, relentless professionalism is the reason there is something real to build on in the first place.
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