Browns guard Joel Bitonio discussed the injuries that plagued him during a memorable Browns season
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00:00 You know coming in half like I'm gonna stop and get the ball back and go score and you know the quick quick back in twice
00:05 And then we're on fourth down. It's like any kind of a stick to this fan kind of game put out of reach of course there
00:11 but
00:13 Obviously the whole thing
00:15 But I don't think it's a finishes what these guys did, you know, it was really
00:19 Together play the culture of the team where we're at
00:23 It's like like
00:28 You know
00:30 So I think that the future of that is
00:35 It's time to look look forward to
00:37 That to replicate though because you know, they're gonna be new faces in here. It's not gonna be the same group next year
00:45 How do you try to at least replicate that?
00:49 Yeah, I think you keep the structure here. Obviously, you know, Angie Barry coach the fancy
00:55 and I think the the main core of guys is gonna be back and I think those guys carry out the culture but
01:03 I
01:05 Think we've learned you know, like what it takes for resilient and obviously like you said each year is different
01:10 But I think the main core is gonna be back the main core can carry that over and be like hey
01:14 This is what we went through like hopefully we don't have to go through anything like that again
01:18 But this is what we went through last year. We had 11 wins. We made the playoffs
01:22 And you know, hopefully that's our our floor now
01:25 It's you know a playoff team that has a chance to win a division and host a host a playoff game, you know in the future
01:30 Yeah, it was honestly very frustrating for me this year I I came in the year I felt great
01:47 You know, I'm not feeling old year 10 like, you know best year yet and you know from the jump my knees just like
01:53 Wasn't there and obviously I did surgery coming back from that. It didn't allow me to
01:57 Train, you know practice the way I wanted to and I think that kind of just like snowballs into the back the oblique the ankle
02:06 I mean ankles freak I got rolled up on but you know all those other things kind of kind of add together and it's it's
02:12 something you
02:13 You don't want you don't want injuries. You don't want to be there and I have
02:17 High standards for myself, you know what I mean? And I want to live up to those standards
02:21 I want it for my teammates for the coaching staff and things like that and being hurt this year
02:25 Definitely took its toll
02:28 What can you say about the job
02:37 How do you feel like this regime
02:40 Is going to be going forward in this ability? It seems like you guys
02:45 Yeah, I think coach fancy's built a culture here. Um
02:48 It's a resilient. I mean we talked about you know, smart tough accountable resilient team
02:54 He probably says that every day, you know, and that's something we focus on
02:58 And I think he's built that I think Andrew Barry's built that with the guys
03:03 He's brought in the people he's brought in, you know revamping the D line this year with the guys that he brought in
03:08 I think
03:09 Tremendously changed the culture on that side of the ball and you know for the team
03:13 But I do think we've built something and like I said, I hope it's a start of hey
03:17 This is what we do. This is a minimum. You go to the playoffs every year and hopefully there's more to come from that
03:22 After 10 years
03:25 Stuff you dealt with this year. You plan to come back next year. Yeah
03:29 Yeah, you know I I want to play and I want to I
03:34 Want to show I could still play at a very elite level, you know, like honestly to myself and took to my teammates like hey
03:41 You know, I still feel like I played well this year
03:43 But I think there's always more and they always want to push yourself to to you know
03:48 Be at the top of your game and I still feel good, you know
03:50 I'm gonna use this offseason to get my body right but yeah, I plan to plan to be back
03:55 Everything affected
03:59 Yeah, I mean
04:01 The hardest part for me was just not being able to train like lift crack like with the knee injury, you know
04:07 It's almost like you're taking a month off lifting, you know, you come back
04:11 It's like oh it feels pretty good. But then you go into a game. It's a thing
04:14 I have to take this week off to get back to the game. So I think it was just like the little things and then
04:18 That adds to towards end of the season
04:21 You know you're back you're oblique like all those things were like
04:24 Oh, maybe I would have been able to lift more earlier in the year or practice more
04:27 Those things add up so it definitely affected it
04:30 And like you said you want to be out there with your teammates, you know, I wanted to be out there yesterday
04:35 It'd been a lot cooler if we would have won the game
04:37 But um, you know, I want to be out there with the guys and and compete with them
04:40 Yeah, I think it's you know for all I'm in you know, it's kind of like we don't really get too many stats
04:55 So it's one of the cool things. Um, I think there's a you know
04:59 Sunni is a good left great left guard in this league and he's been for you know, eight or nine years how long he's played
05:06 Tyler Smith is is a young up and coming players great Quinn Nelson like there's a lot of good left guard
05:12 So, you know, I was hurt this year. I played 15 games, you know, I thought we we did a good job
05:17 There's no line with all the stuff that happened around us, but there's a lot of good left guards in this league
05:22 So, um, but anything it just drives us, you know, we'll have to try and try and get it back next year
05:27 Are you surprised and seem like a second attack you guys differently?
05:31 Defensively yesterday from that first game
05:35 That's right guys off guard. Oh
05:37 You know, I can't speak to like the coverages, you know that that we faced that I'm not really dealing with that
05:43 I thought their front was pretty similar. Maybe they bliss a little bit more than they did in the first game. I think he's made
05:50 bigger plays and bigger moments, you know those pick sixes like we're
05:54 We're very tough for us to recover from but they did a great job
05:58 They they kicked our butt yesterday pretty good. It's kind of sucks in the season on that note
06:03 Enjoy
06:05 Overcoming
06:10 But with so many key guys how much hope you put it
06:17 Yeah
06:20 You know, I was watching the we're about to play Cincinnati
06:23 I was watching the first Cincinnati game and we're pretty healthy at that point in the season and I was like
06:27 It chops pretty big could have football, you know, he saw some of the runs
06:31 He did - Sean was making plays with his legs, you know, Jack and Jed were healthy and I was like
06:36 This is a whole different team, you know, I was what week one to week 18
06:39 And to see those guys already putting in the work like this all like this season like in the training room and what they've done
06:46 It inspires me because I know those guys are coming back and I told Nick I was like
06:52 I want to be out there blocking for you again, cuz I I miss you and I appreciate everything
06:55 He's doing to try and get back on the field
06:57 So when you look at the
06:59 Yeah, we have a lot of different guys have to step up for us, you know
07:10 I think coach Callahan coach Peters John da Costa all did a great job of getting guys ready to play
07:16 You know, we thought we had a strong starting five that was coming back and then obviously from day one injuries, you know
07:22 Heard us. I think the Juan stepped up and showed that he can be a starting tackle in this league as well
07:27 And then Dunney like always came in ready when he needed to Nick Harris
07:33 and then obviously kept moving down to James and
07:36 G and all these guys had to step in and make plays for us
07:40 But to do that and it to still win 11 games and help protect, you know
07:46 All four or five quarterbacks that we had this year. I think it's a testament to the guys
07:49 They put in the work in practice and training camp to uh, you know be ready to go when they have a chance
07:54 I think it's good. Um, you know, it's it's
08:04 He was another one that every time it felt like we were taking a step. He got banged up or hurt
08:10 You know, we'd be Baltimore Baltimore at Baltimore with the Sean they have a chance, you know, they're still playing
08:16 They're playing next week in the division game
08:18 You know the Titans game the Cardinals game like I'm pretty sure he was four and one, you know as a start of this year
08:24 with our defense if they play to the level we know and expect them to play to like I feel very confident with the
08:32 Shock of her back and being our quarterback. Oh
08:34 I just a couple weeks ago. It got messed up. So I'm trying to make it so it doesn't get stuck like that
08:41 So just wear this thing
08:43 Yeah, it's uh, it's been cool I mean
09:00 When you be together like I just look at David and I know everybody's talked about David
09:05 But like when he first came in he was like a 20 year old kid from Miami
09:08 And you're like, oh man, does this guy want to be here and stuff?
09:11 And now he's been here probably what six or seven years now, you know, and it's like grown into like
09:15 One of my favorite guys to be around, you know
09:18 I mean so like you just build these bonds and I think winning helps everything, you know
09:21 You talk about a culture and stuff and it's like the winning obviously helps that stuff
09:25 but
09:25 You know
09:26 there's gonna be guys that are here that are there working they're pushing each other and and you know pretty much anywhere you go in
09:31 the country you have someone that
09:33 That you played with that that's gonna let you stay at their house or go get it. Go get a meal with
09:38 Joe you've been here 10 years
09:40 I mean
09:53 The resilience if you're talking about like a specific moment, I think the last drive against the Ravens when
10:00 When we drove down and won the game and that kind of we push the pile, you know as a group on office
10:06 We always talk about being connected
10:07 I think that was a that was an awesome moment for our team and I think that was a step where he said like hey
10:11 We can play with anybody, you know, we have the right guys in here
10:15 lots of memories
10:17 You know
10:18 Flacco being here and the magic he had was something I'll never forget either
10:22 so it was it was it was a great year ended on a very sour note for us, but uh
10:26 You know, I'm pumped to be here and hopefully continue the winning ways
10:31 So you talked about you mentioned earlier that you think this is the most optimistic you felt coming out to the season?
10:37 Yeah
10:39 You know in 2020 when we made the playoffs I was it was the first time I made the playoffs
10:43 So I wasn't quite sure but I was confident that we could get back and then obviously I kind of fell apart a little bit
10:49 There but I think we have the right the right guys that there's right culture right now
10:53 the camaraderie the room
10:56 Is good so I am confident in this group and their ability to get back to the level we want to next year
11:02 Yeah, I don't know how that's gonna work, you know what I mean, I know Joe he's getting older
11:11 You know, it's five kids now, but I'm sure we'd welcome him back with with open arms
11:15 He's a great locker room guy. We enjoyed having him here
11:18 And he's someone that you know
11:22 You have those guys in the roster that are those kind of blue guys
11:24 And I think he'd be one of those guys to be you did come back
11:26 Yeah, you just you just keep bringing in the right guys, you know, it sucks cuz then I thought you're probably have like a 20
11:39 20 guy turn around, you know, no matter what you do, but you want to bring in the right guys
11:43 You want to you know, focus on some of those intangibles, but I think the chorus here and when you start from the top down
11:50 Ownership to Andrew Barry to coach the fancy to the coaches to the players
11:55 Like everybody's connected right now and everybody has that same vision. I think that helps helps out the most