Joe Thomas: Class of 2023 Pro Football Hall of Fame snapshot

Joe Thomas, shown in 2017, his final year.AP

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Joe Thomas started 167 of 167 games and was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Class of 2023 profiles: Today we are feature a snapshot of each individual being enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton in the order they will be inducted. Enshrinement starts at noon Saturday, Aug. 5, at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

Class of 2023: Rondé Barber, Don Coryell, Chuck Howley, Joe Klecko, Darrelle Revis, Ken Riley, Joe Thomas, Zach Thomas, DeMarcus Ware.

Born: Dec. 4, 1984, in Brookfield, Wisconsin.

Speech order: Ninth.

Presenter: Annie Thomas, his wife.

Induction: Player.

Position: Offensive tackle.

College: Wisconsin.

Draft: First round, 2007.

Teams and years played: 11 – Cleveland Browns, 2007-17.

Jersey: 73.

The knock: Walter Jones – a favorite player of Thomas’ when he came into the league - knocked on Thomas’ door to tell him he was elected to the hall. Thomas once predicted Jones would wind up in the Hall of Fame; Jones was elected in 2014.

Special artifact in the hall: Shoes that commemorate Thomas’ record 10,363 consecutive snaps played and a guitar neck linked to his role as “Dawg Pound” captain for a game in 2022.

Quote: “I had really high expectations for myself and I remember after one of our rookie minicamp practices, the Cleveland media was there to interview me and I said, ‘Well, my first goal is I want to be a starter.’ That’s reasonable. You’re the third pick in the draft. You should probably be a starter pretty soon, maybe tomorrow. And then I said, ‘I want to make the Pro Bowl and then I want to be a Hall of Famer.’ " - Thomas during an NFL Network interview this year. Source: cleveland.com

About Thomas in 50 words: Teammates and fans loved him from the moment he went fishing in lieu of attending the Draft to his iron-man legacy of the snap streak. A fastidious preparer, he was the first offensive lineman in league history to be named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first 10 seasons.

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Related coverage: Gambling 101: Everything you need to know about sports betting in Ohio

Guardians 2022 AL Central championship merchandise for sale: Here’s where you can get Cleveland Guardians gear commemorating their AL Central Division title, including T-shirts, hats, hoodies, and much more

Browns merchandise for sale: Find hoodies to hats, socks to tumblers, wall décor, jerseys and more – including sales and next-day shipping.

I am on cleveland.com’s life and culture team and cover food, beer, wine and sports-related topics. For my recent stories, here’s a directory on cleveland.com. Bill Wills of WTAM-1100 and I talk food and drink usually at 8:20 a.m. Thursdays. Twitter: @mbona30. My latest book, co-authored with Dan Murphy, is “Joe Thomas: Not Your Average Joe” by Gray & Co.

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