The waves of nostalgia have gotten more frequent for Rodney McLeod.
A prime example came after the Dec. 15 loss to the Chiefs at Huntington Bank Field.
“Something that hit me later on after the game was that would be the final time I have to actually get announced in a game,” he told The Chronicle-Telegram. “And I was telling my wife, ‘I didn’t think about it in the moment, but now when the silence kind of hits and settles, you kind of reflect on everything that kind of happened and that was one of the things that I thought about.’”
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McLeod, 34, has two games left in his 13-year NFL career. He announced before the season this would be his last and hasn’t wavered despite the Browns’ 3-12 record.
The safety doesn’t spend the last days counting down the practices and meetings, but his subconscious knows what’s coming.
“The games stand out more to me than anything,” he said. “But I have found myself from time to time in the weight room just drifting off and thinking about, wow, there’s only four remaining, three remaining. It is a reality for me.”
The matchup with the Dolphins on Sunday at Huntington Bank Field will continue the final countdown, and the offense is expected to be introduced. The season concludes next weekend in Baltimore.
McLeod knows how he wants his run to end.
The vision has changed drastically.
“I want to win all (two). I want to go out a winner,” he told reporters. “When I started the season, going out a winner, what that looked like was hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
“But I think any competitor, any person that respects the game as much as I do and the rest of the team, going out and finishing the year strong with solid wins vs. great teams is something that everybody can walk away with and feel good about.”
His coaches and teammates also want to send him out the right way.
“He may not get emotional, but I will,” safeties coach Ephraim Banda said. “He’s been amazing. Rodney McLeod has been — I’ve said this a multitude of times — he’s been an absolute blessing to this organization. He’s been a blessing to me as a coach. He’s been a blessing as the OG to the players in that room.
“I’m giving everything I got with him in mind. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure that he does get to finish his last ride with a win. It may not be the win that he wanted, in the place that he wanted, but I want to make sure as a coach, and the room feels the same way, that we give him the euphoria of winning as many times as possible on that gridiron because of everything he’s done for this game and for this team and for the coaching staff and the organization.”
Juan Thornhill went to the University of Virginia years after McLeod did, but the connection had been made. Thornhill acknowledged the sadness of McLeod’s Super Bowl vision devolving into a melancholy farewell tour.
“We didn’t want it to go this way for him,” Thornhill said. “But now we’ve got to play the hand that we’re dealt. Just trying to go out there and have as much fun, enjoy each other’s company and just play good ball.”
Linebacker Jordan Hicks, who was also teammates with McLeod in Philadelphia, said they’ve talked a lot about the swan song.
“We’re both older guys in the league and I try to pick his brain,” said Hicks, 32. “He is enjoying every moment trying to do everything he can to leave it all out there on the field. And I think about it in my own situation and in our situation as a team, it’s easy to feel sorry for yourself in these moments, it’s easy to look around and try to take the easy route.
“And then you look at a guy like Rod, who knows he only has two games left, who is fighting tooth and nail to leave it all out there on the field, to be in the right spot, to know the opportunities that are coming are dwindling. If he doesn’t make a play, he may not get that opportunity again to make it the next time. So just the ability to look at somebody like that, who’s one of your leaders on the team, and see his mentality going through this situation has been encouraging to me and I think for a lot of guys on the team.”
For a while McLeod led the team with two touchdowns. He returned a fumble in Las Vegas and a blocked field goal in Philadelphia. He has 35 tackles, two for loss, and four passes defensed in 15 games, including three starts.
Despite the team disappointment, he didn’t consider postponing retirement and coming back for a 14th season.
“No. Honestly, just content with whatever the finish is,” he said. “I think there’s no perfect story. There’s no perfect ending to it, and I’m just comfortable with living with the final results.”
He was undrafted and began his career with the St. Louis Rams in 2012. He became a starter the next season and remained one until signing with the Browns in 2023 to be the third safety.
He’s started 146 of 181 games with 753 tackles, 27 for loss, 18 interceptions, 65 passes defensed, 11 forced fumbles, 10 fumble recoveries, five return touchdowns and two sacks. He’s started eight of 25 games with the Browns, totaling 64 tackles, four for loss, five passes defensed and the fumble return for a touchdown.
McLeod’s impact goes well beyond the field. He immediately became a leader and often breaks down the huddle before the game.
“Different forms of leadership that I probably haven’t seen out of myself that he’s shown and I could build upon for years to come, hopefully,” Grant Delpit said.
“Anything that I don’t see, he’s my right-hand man, he’s watching me while I’m out there practicing, telling me ways that I can make plays,” Thornhill said. “He’s helped me out a lot.”
Banda leans on McLeod during the week and on gamedays and would like to see him go into coaching.
“I’ve tried hard to push him into that space, but I think he’s got some plans,” Banda said. “He wants to be an amazing father, he wants to be an amazing husband, he wants to be around for those things and he should go do that. But when it’s time, if he does decide to do that, I’ll be recruiting him harder than I recruited any five-star player in my time.”
McLeod is undecided on what’s next. Media is an option and he got his feet wet with a weekly appearance in studio for 92.3 The Fan.
“Throwing some feelers out there, got some possible options, but nothing concrete,” he said. “Media is one of the options. Possibly somewhere upstairs, whether that’s front office or coaching.
“Just looking forward to really exploring and taking some time away to really have a moment to think with clarity.”
He won a Super Bowl with the Eagles after the 2017 season and was named the NFL Players Association Alan Page Community Award winner in 2022, which is the union’s highest honor, recognizing a member for his community service.
“Thankful, that’s what stands out to me,” McLeod said of his career. “And recognizing the gift that God has blessed me with and making sure that I do right by that, that I respect the gift and I’m responsible with it, and that means me giving everything that I have into this game that’s given me a lot.”
Even if the pregame introductions are done.
“It never feels real to me. Even after 13 years,” he said off being announced to a cheering crowd. “It always feels like a dream all over again. That’s what, I guess, allowed me to continue to show up every single day is because I love it and I think that just continues to re-emphasize the amount of love I have for the sport and the game in general.
“I’ve done it right. I’ve done it the right way.”
