CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Left tackle Joe Thomas knew immediately he wanted to stick around when the Browns hired Hue Jackson.

"I've known Hue casually just from playing against his teams through the years in the NFL and always had nice words with him after the games that we played against Cincinnati this past year," Thomas said after an appearance at the Home and Garden Show at the I-X Center Thursday night. "I talked to him after we hired him, when we were going through the coaching search. He was the No. 1 guy that I was hoping that we would hire.

"I didn't know what our chances would be because of the history that this franchise has had with firing coaches so quickly and going through so many different guys, but for Jimmy to be able to land Hue I think is a huge coup and it says a lot about the resources and the position that we are in even though coming off a 3-13 season.''

The nine-time Pro Bowler believes Jackson's hiring bodes well for the future.

"The things that (Haslam) was telling Hue must have been music to Hue's ears," said Thomas. "I actually saw Hue last weekend. We got a chance to meet in person and talk when we were at the Super Bowl, and I'm really impressed. He's a guy that comes in with a lot of confidence. He has a history as a playcaller, as an offensive genius and I don't think the Cleveland Browns can be any better off than we are with Hue Jackson.''

Jackson's hiring put to rest any thoughts of Thomas asking to be traded, which he said he might do if he didn't like the new staff. Thomas is also confident the Browns will land their quarterback of the future with the No. 2 pick.

"Yeah, I'm in and super-excited about Hue,'' he said. "I think he's going to do a great job and as long as they hit on that quarterback pick, we're set up for a nice run, something the Browns deserve and the Browns fans deserve. You pick a guy like Ben Roethlisberger, your franchise is good for 15 years. That's what I'm hoping we do in this draft.''

Thomas, who knows he'll be trade bait over the next few months, is genuinely optimistic about the season despite that Jackson is his sixth head coach in 10 seasons.

"We got the biggest fish to be had in this off-season and now he was able to put together an impressive staff, so the ship's headed in the right direction,'' he said.

He said he met new offensive line coach Hal Hunter at the Pro Bowl a few years ago and really liked him.

"I've had a chance to do some due diligence on him,'' he said. "I've talked to some guys that have played for him and all of those guys had good things to say about him. Everyone really liked him, they thought he kept a good room, he was a good coach on the field, very technically sound, a good football mind, so I'm excited to work with him."

Thomas, who met with Executive Vice President Sashi Brown after the season and was assured that he's a big part of the team's future, believes the club is in good hands.

"It's great,'' he said. "I'm really happy for him. He's a guy that I've gotten to know over the last couple years in Cleveland, even before he took over as the head man, even before the conversation we had after the season, I developed a relationship with him.

"All the things you hear in the media, that's who he is. He's a humble guy. It's not an ego thing for him. He's really smart and he's very analytical and I think he's the right man for the job."

Just like he believes Jackson is for his.