Seattle has “Beast Mode.” Cleveland has “Feast Mode.”

Or, as the latter is known to the more than 20 friends and family who watched him Sunday at CenturyLink Field, Danny Shelton.

The 6-foot-2, 339-pound Auburn High School and University of Washington graduate returned to the area where he spent most of his life to start at defensive tackle during the Browns’ 30-13 loss against the Seahawks. Shelton finished with seven tackles.

“It’s awesome,” Shelton said during a phone interview last Friday. “It’s everything I could wish for. Playing in the NFL and starting. Being able to come back to Seattle and see my family is everything I could’ve wanted.”

It has been another difficult season for Cleveland. The Browns’ 3-11 record is tied for the worst mark in the NFL, and coach Mike Pettine’s job security has been questioned by several media outlets. Cleveland has lost double-digit games in a season 13 times since the Browns’ franchise was resurrected in 1999.

But Shelton said he doesn’t think about that.

“Not at all,” he said. “We’re a team. We obviously haven’t had the season we wanted. They’ve learned to block everything out. We’re really just focused on playing (Seattle) and winning every week.”

Shelton, who was the No. 12 overall selection in April out of the UW, instead is focused on fulfilling his potential.

“It’s the NFL,” he said. “It’s everything I ever wished for. I always dreamed of playing in the league. This is where I was chosen to be and this is where I’m going to set my legacy. I know it’s going to take time, but this is how it is.”

Shelton hopes to accomplish that through a draft class surrounded by familiarity. He was the first of seven players Cleveland selected from Pac-12 programs. Two of those players – Nate Orchard (Utah) and Xavier Cooper (Washington State) – play on the defensive line with Shelton.

“This team is filled with some top-notch Pac-12 guys,” Shelton said.

It also has led to some banter. Shelton said Orchard, who lives in his neighborhood, teamed up with another Utah alum, Paul Kruger, and talked trash after the Utes defeated the Huskies in November. Shelton said he and kicker Travis Coons, who also played at UW, similarly had fun with Cooper after the Huskies’ Apple Cup win.

While Shelton, who was born in Sacramento, Calif., grew up as a fan of the San Francisco 49ers, he also came to appreciate some Seahawks, such as former linebacker Lofa Tatupu, and respects the franchise’s accomplishments during the last decade.

Shelton, who has 33 tackles this year, said he already knows where his greatest growth needs to occur during the offseason to develop into an impact player along the lines of his football idols.

“Just the mental part of the game,” he said. “You’ve got to be able to control yourself mentally and be disciplined mentally, as well. That’s part of the edge that coming in as a rookie you try and gain up on right away.”

Shelton, whose family moved to Auburn in 2000, remains grateful for the opportunity to achieve his dreams. It almost did not happen.

That is because Shelton was with his brothers, Gaston and Shennon, during a confrontation in 2011. Shennon was fatally shot. A bullet hit Gaston in the chest.

“Every day I always have time to think and reflect on my life,” he said. “I always think of how he would feel in this situation. Being able to come back home, I feel close to my brother because he’s buried in Auburn.”

It is just one reason “Feast Mode” often has his hometown on his mind.