Joe Thomas Reportedly Close To Making Decision On Playing Career For 2018

One of the more intriguing off-season storylines for the Cleveland Browns is whether or not they’ll have their franchise left tackle defending their new quarterback. After going down with a triceps injury that ended his 2017 season, Joe Thomas has been doing a number of things while off the field. From weather reports on the Browns’ Twitter to making cameos on ESPN and hosting a popular podcast with Andrew Hawkins, Thomas has kept himself busy and has been successful in his secondary craft. All of the success is starting to make people wonder if Thomas will transition into the broadcasting world and make his secondary craft his primary focus.

To that, Thomas has responded with an update on his playing future.

Joe Thomas admitted tonight he goes back & forth on whether to come back another year or retire. “It’s difficult.” Meantime, he confirmed he has auditioned for TV jobs.

— Tony Grossi (@TonyGrossi) March 7, 2018

It’s been reported in the past week that Thomas auditioned for Thursday Night Football’s color commentary role with Fox Sports and as mentioned above by ESPN’s Tony Grossi, he continues to have auditions for television jobs. Thomas has admitted the decision has been difficult for him. “It’s difficult,” Thomas said when asked about his current thought process on the subject.

Thomas had been a big advocate for Cleveland bringing in quarterback Kirk Cousins on a free agency deal to be the next guy in charge but that option appears to have vanished. It’ll be interesting to see how much losing out on Cousins will have an impact on his decision.

As of right now, the top left tackle available in free agency would be Nate Solder, who has been with the New England Patriots for the entirety of his career. Other than that, the options of a left tackle replacement through the NFL Draft are slim.