BEREA, Ohio — The decision to rotate Browns left tackle Dawand Jones out of the Ravens game Sunday was predetermined by head coach Kevin Stefanski due to the heat, the third-year left tackle said on Wednesday.
He said that he wasn’t experiencing symptoms that would have required him to take any series off.
Jones played 63 of 73 snaps, making him the only one of the five starting offensive linemen to miss snaps. He first came out during the team’s third offensive series with 3:06 remaining in the first quarter, a three-and-out.
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“He just wanted to make sure I was OK for the game and he didn’t really want me to overheat,” Jones said. “I think that was his main thing is that sometimes it gets hot out there. I was fine personally, but he was being precautious.”
Jones also sat out the first seven plays of an 11-play drive that ended when quarterback Joe Flacco fumbled the ball and Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith returned it for a touchdown.
He was replaced by KT Leveston on all of those plays. Leveston. Leveston was acquired by the Browns in a trade during roster cuts in August for a 2028 seventh-round pick.
“Just with the heat (we) wanted to rotate (Jones) a couple series,” Stefanski said following his team’s 41-17 loss.
Jones, listed at 6-foot-8, 374 pounds, has a history of heat-related issues during his three seasons in Cleveland. He threw up during his first rookie minicamp practice in 2023, a muggy afternoon session in May. He blamed eating too close to practice and the drills’ unexpected tempo.
Last season, Jones left the Browns’ Week 2 game in Jacksonville due to cramping.
During training camp this season, Jones left practice on July 30 due to the heat.
While it’s unconventional for a team to rotate out its left tackle mid-game, Stefanski seemingly had his reasons on a muggy, 82 degree day in Baltimore.
Browns cornerback Denzel Ward dealt with cramping due to the heat on Sunday and left in the first half. He was unable to stay in the game after attempting to return in the second half.
Jones, when asked if he was dehydrated during the game, reiterated the decision was precautionary.
“I wasn’t dehydrated,” he said. “It was just coach’s precaution to take me out. It was nothing wrong with me. He just wanted to make sure I was OK for the rest of the game.”
When asked if the reason for rotating out was performance-based, Jones said, “No.”
The Browns might face another decision this week when they face the Packers at Huntington Bank Field. Sunday is calling for a high of 85 degrees.
Stefanski wouldn’t say if he would again platoon Jones against Green Bay.
“That’s heat related,” Stefanski said. “We’ll see what the temperature looks like coming up.”
Jones also couldn’t say if the strategy would be in place again.
“I don’t really know,” he said. “I didn’t know until we went out there (in Baltimore). So it was like his decision and it’s up to Coach.”
For Jones, it’s a difficult thing to not play every snap, which is usually the norm for offensive linemen. Rhythm and getting into a groove can matter and standing on the sideline for a series doesn’t help.
“As a ball player you get frustrated you won’t be on the field as much,” he said, “but you got to do what’s best for the team, whatever coach wants, you gotta just take it.”
How often Jones gets to help make sure a Micah Parsons-led pass rush doesn’t put too much heat on Flacco might come down to how well the Browns coaching staff thinks he can handle the actual temperature on Sunday.