When Joel Bitonio was in his rookie season, he was surrounded by veteran linemen like Joe Thomas and Alex Mack who had not missed a snap in their careers at that point in time.
For Bitonio, as he wrote in his retirement letter, that set a standard for him and shaped his mindset of how he approached the game.
After 12 years in the NFL, which featured a 6,481 consecutive snap streak from 2017-23, 102 consecutive starts and 178 total starts, Bitonio personified that standard during his career in Cleveland. He held an inner desire to want to live up to the expectation established before him and to be a dependable player for his teammates around him. He always wanted to show up for his team.
"I poured myself into it," Bitonio said during his retirement press conference. "I was 100 percent committed to this team and this organization, and I truly always wanted to be the best version of myself to help make the team as good as we could be, and that's what I pushed for. That's what I hope people remember: this guy was tough, he was going to be out there, he was going to fight for his teammates, and it was just a consistent guy."
And he did just that – and more. Consistency and dependability are two words that coaches, players, front office members and fans associate with Bitonio and his career. Managing and Principal Partner Jimmy Haslam described Bitonio as the "model of consistency," while Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Andrew Berry shared in a statement how Bitonio "set the standards for on-field excellence, professionalism and loyalty during his 12-year career." Head coach Todd Monken also said Bitonio is "someone to look at and say, 'that's what it looks like to be a pro.'"
As Bitonio closes his NFL chapter and retires, his consistency and dependability have also set the precedent for the Browns' new offensive line unit. For a position group that saw so much change in the offseason with additions in free agency and three draft picks, they have an ideal model of what being a Browns' offensive linemen looks like – even if he is no longer an active member of the team.
Check out photos from Joel Bitonio's final day with the Browns at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus, as he retires from the NFL. Bitonio spent the entirety of his 12-year NFL career with the Browns after being drafted by Cleveland in 2014.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio's family on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Courtney Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Managing and Principal Partner Jimmy Haslam speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Managing and Principal Partner Jimmy Haslam speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Managing and Principal Partner Jimmy Haslam speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio speaks to the media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and his family on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Managing Partner JW Johnson, Managing Partner Whitney Haslam Johnson, Joel Bitonio and his family, Managing and Principal Partner Dee Haslam and Managing and Principal Partner Jimmy Haslam on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and the local media on June 9, 2026 in the Dino Lucarelli Media Center at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Head Coach Todd Monken on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Defensive tackle Maliek Collins (96) and Joel Bitonio on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and Cornerback Denzel Ward (21) on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and Defensive Coordinator Mike Rutenberg on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Joel Bitonio and Offensive tackle Spencer Fano (55) on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Offensive guard Zak Zinter (70) on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Offensive guard Zion Johnson (77) on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Offensive Coordinator Travis Switzer on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Quarterback Dillon Gabriel (6), Linebacker Nathaniel Watson (40), Joel Bitonio, Linebacker Carson Schwesinger (49), Linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold (42) and Linebacker Winston Reid (59) on June 9, 2026 at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
For rookies Spencer Fano, Austin Barber and Parker Brailsford, as they navigate the early stages of their NFL careers, they have numerous examples in Thomas, Mack and Bitonio to reference for what success can look like as a Browns' offensive linemen. They have other models of units that featured former players in Wyatt Teller, Jack Conklin, Ethan Pocic and Bitonio that built a level of chemistry and consistency over their time in Cleveland together, and how that translates to success on the field. They each have an opportunity to establish a mindset centered around consistency and dependability from their first offensive snaps with the Browns, regardless of how their individual roles develop.
Even for the veteran additions to the position group in Tytus Howard, Elgton Jenkins and Zion Johnson, they have a responsibility to continue the Browns' standard of consistency and cultivate that mindset in the room, no matter where they line up in the trenches.
For Johnson, who could step in to the starting left guard position this season, he feels a particular level of responsibility. When Johnson first signed with the Browns during free agency, he highlighted just how well-known Bitonio's consistency and level of play was around the league.
"I think every young guard knows who Joel Bitonio is," Johnson said in March 2026. "He's played at an extremely high level, year after year after year. He's kind of the pinnacle and on the level that a lot of young guards aspire to play to. […] It's an honor to be able to play that position after somebody like that. It'll be my job to hold that standard in my time as well."
As the Browns move forward into this new era as a team, Bitonio's legacy as a player will live on. Their new core of offensive linemen must now follow in the footsteps of Bitonio to continue that standard he carried each and every day as they build their own chemistry as a unit.
