Joe Thomas explains why he wanted to remain a Cleveland Brown

The Cleveland Indians’ remarkable 2016 season came to an unfortunate end in Game 7 of the World Series last night, as they lost to the Chicago Cubs in extra innings by a score of 8-7.

I know I’ve been consumed with Indians fever over the past month, so with no more baseball left, fans will now turn their attention to other Cleveland sports. The Cavaliers will no doubt soak up the majority of the love, considering the Browns are 0-8, but the mission to watch this team grow could capture a few fans’ interest. Part of that growth still involves veteran LT Joe Thomas, who was not traded this past Tuesday at the NFL trade deadline.

On MMQB today, Greg Bedard led with Thomas not just staying with the Browns, but his desire to remain in Cleveland.

“For me, I would say that the overarching reason that it's important for me to stay in Cleveland... when I was drafted here I really kind of embraced being a Clevelander,” says Thomas. “It feels like home to me. It almost... I wasn't born here (he was born in Wisconsin), but I can identify with the people that live here and that chip on that shoulder, and how they feel about their football team. They have so much passion and pride for the Cleveland Browns and we've been bad for so long. ... I'm a Cleveland Brown, that’s who I am and I'm not going to change allegiances just to get a Super Bowl title. I want to do it as a Cleveland Brown because that's who I am.”

There are some more quotes from Thomas in the article. He’s been embedded in the culture of this city for a decade to where this is his home. Although he wants to win, he wants that winning to be for his “home” team. Although the money he’s making also aids in the decision to stay in Cleveland, I feel comfort level in the workplace is the top priority when it comes getting up and feeling good every morning.

If the Browns didn’t trade Thomas this year, a lost season when they could have gotten value out of him, then it wouldn’t make sense to trade him this offseason either. Thomas should remain with the club through 2018, and then he can decide if he’s happy enough to retire or continue on with the Browns.