It's a short week for the Browns, and that's been deemed a good thing by coach Hue Jackson, who said it gave the team less time to dwell on their 35-10 loss to the Cowboys.
Browns wide receiver Terrelle Pryor, who is battling through a hamstring injury, agreed wholeheartedly in this week's set of burning questions.
The conversation follows.
CB.com: What's the physical and mental challenge of preparing yourself on a short week?
Pryor: The thing that's unfortunate about it is we just got done playing a game that we lost. There's not really time to go back and look and get better off the things you messed up. You've got to me more detailed and more trusting in the coaches and try your best and hardest to do exactly what they want and be on top of everything. That's what I'm going to try to manage for myself and hopefully everyone else does the same.
CB.com: Could this be an advantage for a young team to be able to bounce back physically on short rest?
Pryor: It's a good thing because you can forget what happened this past week. Everything that happens in the league happens so fast. It has to be water off a duck's back. I think that's a positive. The negative and selfishly for me, I'm battling an injury. It's been about four or five weeks I've been dealing with this thing. That's the thing that stinks about it but I have trust and faith in our training staff. They're handling me the right way and getting me ready to play at a level where I feel comfortable.
CB.com: What goes into getting ready while dealing with a hamstring injury?
Pryor: Taking a lot of the tools that we use for therapy back home and doing the stuff by myself. At the end of the day, our trainers get out of here when it's time for them to go. On top of me doing stuff at the facility, I try to do extra. It really has to do with me. It's getting better. This is the best it's felt in five or six weeks. I should be out there and able to play pretty fast. I'm excited about that.
CB.com: How did things change for you last week with Corey Coleman on the opposite side of the field?
Pryor: It was different. At the end of the day, I believe in our offense. We fight hard. Our defense does, too. As an offense, we have to protect our quarterback better. He's been taking some brutal shots. Sometimes I watch film and it doesn't just have to do with the line. It's also about the receivers getting open and being at the right spot at the right time. It has to do with all of us, really. It kind of makes me sick seeing our quarterback get hit like that. I know it's a group effort, we want to do better and try to be there when he needs us. We have to keep him clean and I know we don't like seeing him get hit. It has to do with all of us. We must clean that up first and foremost.
CB.com: What's impressed you about Cody Kessler's ability to stay consistent despite the hits?
Pryor: I think there were two or three times last week where these shots looked like career-ending. I've played with Carson Palmer so I saw a couple hits that he's taken that Cody's taken and it knocked Carson out the rest of the year for various injuries, leg injuries and stuff like that. For him to get up, talking with Cody on Facetime day in and day out, the kid's a warrior. He has the heart of a lion. I've said that before. That's what's very impressive about him to me. Like he told me today, he said it sucks getting hit but it feels so much better when you get hit and complete the ball. That's kind of his mindset and that's a warrior mindset. I'm kind of like, 'geez.' Playing quarterback is incredibly hard and for him to have that mindset, it's a warrior mindset and that's somebody I love to play for.
CB.com: This team has prided itself on entering every game with a fresh mindset. How have you seen that play out this week?
Pryor: It has to be a next game mentality. Do we like to be 0-9? No. Should we be 0-9? No. There's a lot of games we should have won that we had but for some reason slipped. We've just got to keep fighting. At the end of the day, I still look at it like we still have a chance to make the playoffs. It's going to start this week. If we lose that, it probably dwindles down but you never know. If something clicks with us and maybe win seven games in a row, you never know what can happen. That's the exciting part and something we can work on and aim for. I know we're looking forward to it and it's going to be a fun, primetime game. What's a better way to make a statement? They're going to be ready, too, so we've got to bring our game and be on top of it.
