Former left tackle Joe Thomas is one of the best players in Cleveland Browns history. Thomas was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame back in 2023, an honor reserves for only the best NFL players. He has never been shy about sharing his thoughts about other NFL players.
To that end, Thomas revealed an interesting nugget on Glory Daze with Johnny Manziel.
Thomas revealed which of his 21 former Browns quarterbacks he thinks should have panned out in the NFL.
“Colt McCoy is a guy that he’s been one of my good friends for a long time,” Thomas said. “He ended up putting in 13 years in the NFL, putting some great years together. I don’t think he ever could have been top of the NFL, Pro-Bowl type quarterback.”
Manziel confirmed that Thomas meant McCoy meant being a top 15 quarterback.
“Yeah, like top 15,” Thomas replied. “But I think he would have been a really solid starter for us had we believed in him a little bit more. And that’s some of the challenges of being a mid-round draft choice at quarterback. If you show that you have a lower ceiling they immediately kind of peg you to be a backup. Like oh, this guy can be a good backup for us and that’s kind of the role that you end up playing. You do get some opportunities but sometimes they’re just before you’re ready.”
McCoy finished his NFL career with 7,975 yards for 34 touchdowns and 32 interceptions.
His career record was 11-25 as a starter.
Joe Thomas critiques Browns QB Shedeur Sanders before rookie season
Don't be fooled by Thomas' kind words about McCoy. He is more than capable of criticizing Cleveland's quarterbacks as well.
Shedeur Sanders is the perfect example. Thomas delivered a harsh review of Sanders ahead of his rookie season.
“There’s a lot of nuance in it, which the Shedeur Sanders cult doesn’t have,” Thomas said on OutKick’s Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich. “They just believe that we’re morons for not being able to see that this guy is the greatest thing since sliced bread, the greatest quarterback since Tom Brady, and he’s ready right now to be able to elevate the franchise to their first Super Bowl of all time, and we’re the idiots for not seeing it. I think he has a higher ceiling. He’s a great playmaker, he has tremendous accuracy, he has that feel when he is in the game of how to make those big plays. But just because you have that ceiling that’s really high and that potential to be able to do that doesn’t mean you can do it right now.”
Perhaps Sanders can eventually reach his potential with the Browns.
Sanders is currently third on Cleveland's depth chart behind Joe Flacco and Dillon Gabriel.
