Throughout his illustrious career, former Cleveland Brown offensive tackle Joe Thomas has faced many different pass rushers during his heyday.
Among those has stood out with the current crop of defensive players, Oakland Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack was singled out by Thomas on Thursday during a segment on The NFL Network as being the most difficult assignment that he has faced. (h/t Levi Damien of Silver and Black Pride)
Which pass rusher gave @joethomas73 fits?
And which current edge rusher does he believe stands above the rest?
He's "got it all." https://t.co/AOaBfuyReF
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) July 25, 2018
Article Continues Below“Khalil Mack is that guy that from the moment he stepped in the league when you’re watching film, you’re like ‘I don’t know how I’m gonna be able to stop this guy’ because he’s got it all. He can stop the run, he can stop the pass, he’s got a bunch of different pass rush move, he’s fast, he’s quick, he’s explosive, he can run right through you, he can run around you. When I guy can do all of those things, [he’s] extremely dangerous.”
This is certainly high praise coming from Thomas, who is widely regarded as one of the best offensive linemen to play the game with the trajectory of being a sure-fire Hall of Famer. In his 11 seasons in the league, he had earned 10 Pro Bowl selections, seven First-Team All-Pro nods, and two Second Team All-Pro selections.
Mack has shown to be a disruptive factor on the field throughout his first four years in the league that has earned him the reputation as being a top defensive player. He is off yet another impressive campaign where he had a team-high 10.5 sacks, which made him the fifth player in team history to record at least 10 sacks in three different seasons. His 40.5 sacks through his first four years are the third-most by a player over that stretch in Raiders’ history and fifth-most all-time.
The only thing lacking at this moment is a new lucrative deal as he has continued to stay away from the Raiders in hopes of earning a huge extension that will keep with the team for next several seasons.