Thomas voted to Pro Bowl for ninth time

Veteran center

Mack will join

his teammate

By MARY KAY CABOT

The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND

Browns left tackle Joe Thomas’ steady march toward the Hall of Fame continued Tuesday when he was voted to his ninth straight Pro Bowl in as many NFL seasons.

The nine trips ties the Browns record held by Hall of Famers Jim Brown and Lou Groza.

The No. 3 overall pick in 2007, Thomas will be joined in the all-star game by Browns center Alex Mack, who’s making third appearance.

Voted as alternates are special teamer Johnson Bademosi, receiver Travis Benjamin and tight end Gary Barnidge, who’s having a blockbuster season and tied Ozzie Newsome’s record with nine touchdown catches in a season, the most for a Browns tight end in team history.

Not surprisingly in this down year for the defense, none of the defenders made it.

Last season, Thomas became the first offensive lineman to make the Pro Bowl in each of his first eight seasons, and this year he becomes one of eight players to make it in each of their first nine seasons.

All are in the Hall of Fame except for Thomas, who will be eligible after he’s been retired for five years. They are (* denotes Hall of Fame inductee):

They list is as follows, with the star denoting Hall of Fame inductee:

Merlin Olsen* DT, Los Angeles Rams, Los Angeles Rams, 14 (1962-75).

Mel Renfro* DB, RB, Dallas Cowboys, 10 (1964-73).

Barry Sanders* RB, Detroit Lions, 10 (1989-98).

Lawrence Taylor* LB, New York Giants, 10 (1981-90).

Joe Thomas, OL, Cleveland Browns, 9 (2007-15).

Jim Brown*, RB, Cleveland Browns 9 (1957-65).

Franco Harris*, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers, 9 (1972-80).

Derrick Thomas*, LB, Kansas City Chiefs, 9 (1989-97).

“Jim Brown and Lou Groza are two of the greatest Browns of all time and the list of players who have been selected to the Pro Bowl their first nine seasons is a who’s who of NFL history,” Thomas said in a Browns release. “The neat thing about that list is that it spans many generations. To be included with names like those is pretty special and very humbling.”

In addition to Thomas’ elite level of play, he’s also the Browns’ ironman. He’s started all 142 career games at tackle and has not missed an offensive snap. His 8,815 consecutive offensive snaps is the longest active streak in the league and his 142 consecutive starts trails only D’Brickashaw Ferguson (159) among active players.

Thomas, when answering a question about the future of No. 19 overall pick Cam Erving, explained the secret to his success.

“A lot of times, you’ll see guys getting beat in the NFL in general on the offensive line just because their feet are out of place,’’ he said. “Your strength and your power come from where your feet are. I’m probably one of the weakest offensive linemen in the NFL, but it doesn’t matter if you have good feet and you’re constantly in the right positions, you’re using leverage, you’re using angles, you’re winning the science of your position.

“For young players, it’s something that it takes some time to learn, that it’s really not about weight-room strength, it’s more about the positions you can get your body in to be strong— grown man wins, leverage, angles.’’

Greco on injured reserve

The Browns placed starting offensive guard John Greco on injured reserve.

Greco suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament on the second play of Sunday’s loss in Seattle. The 30-year-old started Cleveland’s first 14 games this season and has started 54 since being acquired by the Browns in 2011.

Browns coach Mike Pettie said Greco will not need surgery. Erving will likely start the final two games against Kansas City and Pittsburgh in Greco’s spot.

The Browns are also missing starting left guard Joel Bitonio, out with a severely sprained ankle.

Also, the team re-signed rookie wide receiver Darius Jennings to the active roster. Jennings had five catches for 35 yards and returned five kickoffs for 112 yards in two games after being elevated from the practice squad.

Jennings signed with the Browns as an undrafted free agent after playing at Virginia.