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It takes a certain buoyancy of spirit to be Joe Thomas. Because after blocking for 20 different quarterbacks since being drafted by the Browns in 2007, he thinks they may have found the one.

The stalwart left tackle said that in his opinion, Robert Griffin III has shown enough to suggest he could be the starter in Cleveland next year and beyond.

“I think you’ve seen franchise-level talent for sure and I wouldn’t write him off by any stretch of the imagination,” Thomas said, via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “I wouldn’t be shocked at all if he was our guy at the beginning of next season because I think he’s shown enough that if they do decide to make Robert the guy, I think he can definitely be they guy and I think he’d have the support of the locker room.”

Of course, it would still be a very sight-unseen commitment, as Griffin has played in just 13 games since the end of the 2013 season, and only four of those with the Browns this year. It’s unclear if he’ll play this week against the Steelers because of a concussion suffered last week.

Coach Hue Jackson and associate head coach Pep Hamilton have likewise been bullish on Griffin’s future, which seems odd for a guy who has completed 54.2 percent of his passes and hasn’t thrown a touchdown yet as a Brown. And maybe it’s just the positive nature of Thomas, who has played so long and so well for such a bad team that he’s simply holding out hope.