Latest news with #JoelBitonio
USA Today
2 days ago
- General
- USA Today
Why Joel Bitonio opted out of retirement and to return to the Browns
Why Joel Bitonio opted out of retirement and to return to the Browns The Cleveland Browns hosted their 25th annual golf tournament on Monday. Among the Browns players in attendance, Cleveland's starting left guard Joel Bitonio was one of those who made a public appearance at the course. Browns fans have waited patiently to see if future Hall of Fame guard Joel Bitonio would return for his 12th season, and he has now finally discussed his thought process during the difficult decision: 'At the end of the year, I was truly deciding if I wanted to play anymore,' said Bitonio. 'At the end of the day, I'm not ready to be done. I want to play more, and I want to play in Cleveland.' Bitonio also spoke in detail about his conversations with head coach Kevin Stefanski, offensive line coach Mike Bloomgren, and Browns general manager Andrew Berry. He highlighted these discussions as key factors in making his decision. The Cleveland Browns hosted their Foundation Golf Tournament at the Westwood Country Club, where Bitonio shared his thoughts alongside head coach Kevin Stefanski. After his expected absence from OTAs, many were eager to hear from the Browns captain about his future in Cleveland. Bitonio is expected to be fully healthy and active at the Browns' mandatory veteran minicamp, scheduled for June 10–12.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Guard Joel Bitonio says Browns have to ‘establish our standard' as a run-focused offense
ROCKY RIVER, Ohio — Rock-solid Cleveland Browns guard Joel Bitonio considered retirement after a difficult 2024 season, but he informed the team in March that he planned to return. Now that it's June, Bitonio sees the 2025 Browns returning to a familiar offensive blueprint that focuses on the run game and relies on an experienced, well-paid offensive line to help stabilize things and contribute to a much-improved product. Advertisement While the primary offseason headlines revolve around the four-man quarterback competition, Bitonio told reporters Monday that much of the behind-the-scenes offseason work points to the Browns returning to coach Kevin Stefanski's offensive roots. The Browns are going to run the ball. And if it works, they'll keep running it. 'For an O-line, if you drop back to throw 40, 50, 60 times a game, (that's difficult),' Bitonio said. 'That's still going to happen. You still have to pass the ball to win in this league. But if you can have a brand (that says), 'We're going to take care of the football,' and I think the way we won in the past is our defense was fresh, that can work. The games that (the defense) played great, they played 50 or 60 snaps, not 70 or 80 snaps a game. And so if we can control the ball and handle those things, I think it's a big step. 'From the installs and from what I've seen, it's going back to what Coach Stefanski has been known for.' 'I'm not ready to be done, I want to play more and I want to play in Cleveland' — Cleveland Browns (@Browns) June 2, 2025 Bitonio twice referenced a feeling of 2020 and 2021, when Stefanski arrived and the Browns went 11-5 in his first season as head coach. In 2021 and 2022, running back Nick Chubb posted 20 total rushing touchdowns while compiling two of his three best rushing seasons. Chubb suffered a major knee injury early in 2023 and is currently a free agent who's not in the Browns' plans, but they drafted two running backs and return five offensive linemen who have started games over multiple seasons. With quarterback Deshaun Watson injured and not in the team's plans, and Stefanski returning as the play caller as part of a staff that has a new offensive coordinator in Tommy Rees and a new offensive line coach in Mike Bloomgren, the Browns are moving past a 3-14 season that Bitonio said 'snowballed' and returning to at least a blueprint of what they know has worked. 'Overall I think we just had the wrong mentality (last season), and I think Coach Stefanski has already stressed the toughness that we need to bring back, how practice is going to be,' Bitonio said. 'I think rookie minicamp and the OTAs have already kind of picked up that tempo. We're not resting on any laurels of playoffs (like the 2024 Browns were) or anything like that. It's a new team, and we have to establish our standard and what we want the Browns to be.' Advertisement Jerome Ford is the lead running back for now, though rookies Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson should be in the mix. The interior of the offensive line — Bitonio and Wyatt Teller at guard with Ethan Pocic at center — has been a strength and should be again this season. But Bitonio, Teller and Pocic are all currently signed only through 2025. With Bitonio's playing plans beyond this season uncertain, there's an urgency involved with establishing — or, as Bitonio says, re-establishing — the kind of run game the Browns had early in Stefanski's tenure. 'The offense can (win with) ball control: run the ball, play-action passes, do all the things that you want to,' Bitonio said. 'That's the picture you paint and you see where you're at, and that's what we're hoping for. But hope is an easy word. We're trying to work for it and we're trying to put the group out there and try and win some games this year.' The 2024 Browns were in the bottom-third of the league at just 4.1 yards per rush and tied for 30th with just eight rushing touchdowns all season. Per TruMedia, the Browns were 21st in rush EPA and 28th in rush success rate. Another year of a quarterback carousel contributed to that, but Chubb was never fully healthy after returning in October, and things never clicked with Watson and offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, who was fired the day after the season concluded. 'For me, this feels like a 2020, 2021 install of the outside zone with power schemes mixed in, which I think is a strength of what our O-line does,' Bitonio said. 'Obviously, we're a little bit older, but Jack (Conklin) comes from outside zone (roots). Wyatt is one of the better pullers, power blockers in the league. (Pocic) can kind of do it all, but I think it fits us so much better.' Bitonio, 33, was open last winter about contemplating retirement, but he's said his body feels good ahead of his 12th NFL season. Bitonio is a seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro. With 161 career starts, Bitonio is just seven short of passing Hall of Famer Joe Thomas for the most by any player in the Browns' post-1999 era. Advertisement With the endorsement of his family and acknowledgement that he spoke to Thomas about his football future, Bitonio said he's preparing for another season with an open mind and the belief that he can still play at a high level. Bitonio participates in the Browns' offseason program, but he's not on the field for their 10 organized team activity practices, which began last week. That's simply load management, a philosophy he's adopted since the return to a full offseason program for most players in 2022. 'I got to a point in my career personally where it was the extra reps versus how my body feels,' Bitonio said. 'And so I've kind of worked through that over the last few years. And this year I've been in meetings, I've been in the weight room with the guys, I've been working out, I've been in Berea all offseason. So I've seen that, I've been around the guys, and it's really just a process (in OTAs) of getting guys reps and building your depth and finding guys. Because truly, I don't think anybody makes the team or doesn't make the team in OTAs. You get a foundation of what you want your team to be. 'We've got to be tough up front. We've got to turn 2- and 3-yard runs into 4- and 5-yard runs. Our defense has to be tough. It's all toughness. It starts at training camp and just having that ability to go to battle, and when things do not go your way — it's a long season, you're going to lose some games — how do you bounce back? How do you not let one loss turn into two? And so, yeah, we've got to be tough up front for sure.'
USA Today
05-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Browns getting Joel Bitonio back for 2025 season despite contemplating retirement
Browns getting Joel Bitonio back for 2025 season despite contemplating retirement Despite some speculation, the Cleveland Browns received good news about their longest-tenured player on the team in left guard Joel Bitonio. On Wednesday, Cleveland left guard Bitonio announced he will return for his 12th season in the NFL in 2025. The 33-year-old has been a Pro Bowler for seven straight seasons and started all but two games since 2017. This is one less need for the Browns to address in NFL free agency and the 2025 NFL draft. With defensive end Myles Garrett's future in doubt, there were rumblings that Bitonio could call it a career after a disappointing 3-14 season in 2024. However, Bitonio used the two months after the season ended and decided to stay in the NFL for at least one more year. Having Bitonio back for another year will allow some continuity with questions looming at the tackle positions. While the Browns will take the next few months to figure out the quarterback situation and other spots, they now have their All-Pro-level guard back on the left side of the line.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Guard Joel Bitonio will return for 12th season with the Browns
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Joel Bitonio will return for a 12th season with the Cleveland Browns. The guard announced his decision through the team on Wednesday. Bitonio has played his entire career in Cleveland after he was selected in the second round (35th overall) of the 2014 draft. Bitonio said at the end of the season that he wanted to take a couple of months before making a final decision. He played a career-high 1,177 offensive snaps this past season and started all 17 games on a team that was 3-14 after making the playoffs in 2023. He has one year remaining on his contract. Bitonio is a two-time All-Pro pick and has been selected seven times for the Pro Bowl. His 161 games — all starts — are 13th in franchise history with the starts trailing only Hall of Fame tackle Joe Thomas (167) for most by a Cleveland player since 1999. ___ AP NFL: The Associated Press
Associated Press
05-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Guard Joel Bitonio will return for 12th season with the Browns
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Joel Bitonio will return for a 12th season with the Cleveland Browns. The guard announced his decision through the team on Wednesday. Bitonio has played his entire career in Cleveland after he was selected in the second round (35th overall) of the 2014 draft. Bitonio said at the end of the season that he wanted to take a couple of months before making a final decision. He played a career-high 1,177 offensive snaps this past season and started all 17 games on a team that was 3-14 after making the playoffs in 2023. He has one year remaining on his contract. Bitonio is a two-time All-Pro pick and has been selected seven times for the Pro Bowl. His 161 games — all starts — are 13th in franchise history with the starts trailing only Hall of Fame tackle Joe Thomas (167) for most by a Cleveland player since 1999. ___
