The Cleveland Browns had interviews today following the final practice before they head off to Kansas City. Kevin Stefanski, Myles Garrett, Kareem Hunt, Coach Bill Callahan, and Run Game Coordinator Ben Bloom all spoke to the media.
Head Coach Kevin Stefanski
Opening statement:
“A good week of preparations. We have tomorrow some meetings, walkthrough and we will get on the airplane. Looking forward to a great challenge playing a really football team on the road.”
On how DE Jadeveon Clowney looked at practice today:
“He obviously was sick so good getting him back in here. It was nice seeing him out there at practice.”
On if there are any other details on WR Odell Beckham Jr.’s status for Sunday beyond being listed as questionable:
“Not really.”
On what the decision comes down to if Beckham will play or not:
“I think he was limited today so we will use the next 48 hours with all of these guys and determine who is playing and who is not. We will let you know 90 minutes before the game.”
On if the decision for Beckham’s status will come down to watching warmups on Sunday morning:
“I think for all of these guys that were limited at practice, we will make sure that we huddle up over the next 48 hours and make decisions.”
On confirming Beckham has not taken any full contact to the ground or taken a hit to the knee yet:
“Correct.”
On if Beckham has met the benchmarks the team has laid out for him to be ready for Week 1:
“All of the guys who are rehabbing from any injury, we make sure that we follow the medical advice and go through the rehab process like that so he is no different.”
On if Beckham has sustained a setback with rehab that resulted in a questionable status for Sunday:
“No.”
On if the Browns believe in setting snap counts for a player or if they are expected to be available for the entire game if active:
“For every single player who comes into the game, they have to be ready to play the whole game, but we as coaches and as a medical staff make sure that we have guys who are ready to do whatever they are capable to do. To answer your question, yes, there are a bunch of guys that you look at and say, ‘Alright, he can go this many plays based on this.’”
On if it was quick for DE Takk McKinley to get back to what was wanted physically:
“He has done a nice job out there, just how attentive he is at the walkthroughs, in the meeting room and coming out here on the practice field and playing really fast. He has done a nice job.”
On the weather being expected to be 93 degrees at kickoff on Sunday and hydration being a key focus for the team this week:
“Yeah, it is one of those other things that we do not control. We do not control the crowd noise and we do not control the heat, but we have to deal with it. We have to have a plan. We have made sure that the guys are understanding what they need to do really throughout the week to make sure that they are ready to go on Sunday.”
On if the Browns will name captains for the season or on a game-by-game basis:
“We are going to do the same thing that we did last year. We will do game captains.”
On if he knows the game captain(s) for Sunday:
“I do, but I am not going to disclose.”
On if the cheer at practice was for the announcement of this game’s captains:
“It was. Should have looked a little bit closer (laughter).”
On the philosophy behind selecting captains on game-by-game basis rather than for the full year:
“It is just how we do it. It does not mean it is the right way to do it. I just feel like you do not need that C on the chest to be a leader. I feel like each game highlighting one guy and what he means to the team and having him be the captain works better for us.”
On how excited he is to finally start the regular season:
“I think a lot of the guys are excited about the opportunity to go compete. It is a great team we are playing and a great coaching staff so they understand the challenge and the task at hand. That is the exciting part for these guys is to go watch them compete.”
DE Myles Garrett
On his mindset for Sunday’s game after playing the Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round:
“Go in and go win. It is a big game. They have proven that they can go to the Super Bowl and win the Super Bowl. They are one of the best teams in the league. We want to be ranked amongst that group. We have to go in there and attack them.”
On if he likes to get this type of test to start the season:
“I sure do not mind it. I like it. I like to be able to go against the best, and I am sure that the rest of the guys are eager for the challenge, as well.”
On how nice it was to get DE Jadeveon Clowney back at practice today as the Browns prepare to face a Chiefs OL with several new starters:
“They are new, but they have some good guys on their line. Not selling them short. Not going to take them for granted. We have to go out there thinking that they put in the same kind of work that we have. We are going to go out there and test them, but we have to get ourselves sharp before we can go out there and put on the performance we want to.”
On if he was worried about Clowney’s status after missing practices this week due to illness:
“No, I am going to go out there and do what I do regardless. I am sure glad that he is back – will never sell that short. I was not playing with Clowney last year or my first three years so if anything happens, I am not going to be afraid to take on the challenge with the rest of the guys in the locker room because I know they are just as prepared.”
On what stands out from watching film of the playoff matchup against the Chiefs:
“What sticks out? How well (Chiefs QB) Patrick (Mahomes) was playing before he got knocked out. (Chiefs QB Chad) Henne scrambling and no one picking him up – that hurts. I pick up on most of the negative plays. I do not care how many plays I was close, I got a hit or I made a tackle or how well we did. It is the negative plays and how we can clean that up. We were only a couple of plays from being in a completely different situation. How we can improve and how we can sharpen ourselves to take the next step.”
RB Kareem Hunt
On his feelings returning to Kansas City and Arrowhead Stadium again:
“It feels good. Get to play the team that put us out last year, and we get to come up with a big time opponent. It will show us where we are early so I can’t wait.”
On if there are still some personal feelings returning to Kansas City, given his history with the Chiefs:
“I would not say personal, but yeah, I definitely want to be able to knock these guys off the first game and the first week. It is always like that, but it is another game. I want to win every game we play. They are just in the way and no hard feelings, but I am coming trying to win.”
On if Arrowhead Stadium is one of the loudest stadiums in the NFL:
“It is the loudest stadium I have ever played at, and I have been on their side before. I do not know how the heck offenses can really can think with all this noise so we are going to have to figure it out, and play hard and fast.”
On if the crowd noise at practice gets close to how loud it is at Arrowhead Stadium:
“There is no way to practice it. There is no way, I do not think, to practice it, but we try. It gets loud here when we have the crowd noise, but that is a different type of loud.”
On if there is excitement to see what WR Odell Beckham Jr. can bring to the Browns offense, given the unit really started clicking after the bye week when Beckham was unavailable due to injury:
“I am definitely excited to see him come back. He is looking great – very explosive, fast and great hands. He is looking like he never got hurt. I am excited to see what he brings.”
Offensive line coach Bill Callahan
On the state of the Browns OL, particularly with all five starters returning from last year:
“We are just starting from the bottom again. Everything we have done so far from training camp coming now to this point to game week is just the repetition and the monotony of doing the same fundamental techniques every day until they are bored with them (laughter). It has been good work. The guys have really bought in to the system of techniques that we are doing, and they are really dialed into the gameplan, as well. This is a great challenge for us. A lot of great challenges across the board going into Kansas City.”
On how much the Browns OL have talked about not playing in front of many fans last year and now returning to full stadiums, including Arrowhead Stadium this Sunday:
“It was loud in Arrowhead last year when we played. I think the preseason has given us a pretty good inkling of what the crowd noise is. When we went down to Atlanta, there was kind of a semblance of that. Through practice, which everybody does now, in terms of generating crowd noise or manufacturing crowd noise through the technological systems, it has been good. It actually feels louder sometimes because you are right on that noise system here at practice. You can never get enough work. Again, it is hard to simulate that, but we try to do the best we can. We have been doing it for years. I have done it all the way back when I was in college way back a long time ago.”
On T Jedrick Wills Jr.’s development:
“The maturation of a rookie to a first-year or second-year player, there is a huge difference. Having that time from the end of the season from the time to you begin anew, it really helps the players see the game in a different light. They know what to expect. Nothing is new anymore. They know the routine. They know what the techniques are. They can adjust to things that you do a little bit more easily or readily when you are in the meeting and you take it to the grass. I think that is the transition I see in his play. Just the overall growth mentally and physically, he did a lot of work in the offseason working on his legs and of course working his hand speed for pass protection. He is maturing into a really good pro, and that is great to see. He loves the game. He has a great passion for the game. We just want to elevate his performance as high as we can get it.”
On Gs Michael Dunn and Blake Hance building upon their contributions from last season:
“They worked hard, and they developed really nicely. I think I have mentioned this a couple of times, but I have two really quality assistant coaches in (assistant offensive line coach) Scott Peters and (offensive quality control coach) Jonathan Decoster. These guys work with them every day. Especially Scott, who is a hands expert, if you ever get time to just visit with him and talk about his background and what it brings into the offensive line room, it is really unique in the sense that there are not a lot of martial artists out there who can take that type of system into pro football. I think we are unique in that regard, and I think we are fortunate, as well, to have somebody like Scott who can bring a different perspective to line play because he has played offensive line, and he has studied all of these different techniques and leverages when he was working as a BJJ wrestler. He has all of that instinctively in him, and he kind of built his own system. We have kind of collaborated and made our own system now with the players. It is really interesting, and it is different. I am not saying it is better than anybody, but it is truly unique and it is a little bit different. If you get a chance to talk to the players about it, I am sure they would give you some insights, as well.”
Run game coordinator Ben Bloom
On how he feels about his group heading into the Chiefs game:
“I feel great. The guys have worked really hard throughout training camp and the preseason, and we have had a really good week of practice. Excited about them and the team to get the opportunity to go and compete on Sunday.”
On the challenges the Chiefs present in the running game:
“I do not think it is any secret that (Chiefs Head) Coach (Andy) Reid and his teams believe in running and throwing the ball. It is not just a one-dimensional offense. They have had success in both ways. The challenge is you have to defend an excellent pass game and run game at the same time. From a coverage standpoint, you want to put your secondary and intermediate defenders in really good positions to defend the pass game, but at the same time, we have to defend the run too if they run it on first and second down. The challenge is defending both. They are a good team. They are well coached. They have good players. It is a great challenge to have in Week 1.”
On the challenge for LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah this week playing the Chiefs in his first NFL game:
“Any game is a challenge for any NFL player. The NFL is challenging for players and for coaches. For rookies, it is a challenging first season. For veterans, it is a challenging season. For a rookie for a first game, there are challenges in that. For Jeremiah, the guy is a really good football player. He has been his whole life. He has practiced great, and he is preparing really well. He works hard. He is a self-corrector, and he improves every day. I am excited to get to see him play.”
On how quickly Owusu-Koramoah has progressed since joining the Browns:
“I think he is right on track. He gets better every day. He learns from his mistakes. He is a very, very diligent note taker. He is very professional in terms of the meeting rooms. That has impressed me so much. When he gets out on the practice field, whatever happened the day before good or bad, he starts fresh, starts new and works hard. He is doing a heck of a job so I am really excited for him.”
On the benefits to having a player like LB Anthony Walker Jr. on the field to help the defense get lined up, especially when playing a challenging offense like the Chiefs:
“Anthony Walker came as advertised. I knew plenty about him before he got here. He is the ultimate professional. He has played a lot of football, and he has seen a lot of football. He sees the game like a coach. He prepares like a coach. He communicates at an extremely high level. You are really fortunate as a coach and as a defense to have a guy like that at linebacker who can help you with all of those things.”
On how much of a factor DE Jadeveon Clowney can be in the run game and if it was a relief to see Clowney back at practice today:
“Yeah, we love when Jadeveon is here. He has done a heck of a job out at practice for us. It is really fun being around him because he comes to work, he executes and he always has a smile on his face so he brings great energy. I believe in him as a human, as a run defender and as a pass rusher, and I am excited to see him work.”