New Browns T James Hudson credits Joe Thomas film for big college transition

"Joe Thomas, I look up to him," Hudson said in a video call with local reporters. "When I first got switched from defensive line to offensive line, I went to YouTube, and I typed in Joe Thomas. That was the first thing I did, just to learn some stuff, see how he plays the game and apply what he did to my game."

Now, Hudson will look to continue to blossom at the position with the same team as Thomas.

Hudson, a Toledo native, was drafted by the Browns in the fourth round (110th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft. He emerged as one of the top tackle prospects of the draft class after becoming a full-time starter with Cincinnati, where he transferred after the 2018 season, and earning First Team All-AAC honors in 2020.

At 6-foot-4 and 313 pounds, Hudson immediately enters the competition as a swing tackle — he practiced both left and right tackle in college — and joins an offensive line that was the top-ranked unit in the NFL in 2020.