On his bye week:
"It was good. Thanks for asking."
On facing the Patriots and Patriots QB Tom Brady on Sunday:
"I think that everything the Patriots and all that encompasses New England within their franchise is with how they do it consistently. He has been a stable part of that for a long time so any chance you get to go up against competition like that it is a good opportunity to see what you are all about. We are excited about it."
On if during his draft process there was a time he might be selected by the Patriots:
"Yeah, I said that in an article so I am guessing that is why you said that."
On potentially going to the Patriots being mentioned in a documentary:
"Yeah, then it got written on a piece of paper so you knew about it. You knew the answer to the question you had already asked?"
On what led him to believe he may be selected by the Patriots:
"Just a hunch. I was wrong, like some of your articles, though."
On if the Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels spent a lol of time with him leading up to the draft:
"No, just a short amount of time."
On if McDaniels hosted him for a private workout in 2018:
"Nope. No."
On the Patriots defense's 18 interceptions through seven games:
"Obviously, they are a well-coached team. That is just plain and simple. They are aggressive. They give their secondary the chance to play aggressive and have eyes in the backfield to see where the ball is thrown, and then they are always in the right place at the right time. It is part of being well coached, guys knowing exactly what they need to do and doing their job. They play well with each other."
On what the Patriots do best to challenge young QBs:
"They move guys around up front. They try to get you to give the perfect look or perfect protection and they mix stuff up. They pressure you. They hit you up. If you are a young quarterback, you can see that. They have done that so far this year. We will see how they play us, but we have to be ready for pressure and react."
On if the Patriots change their gameplan each week or always play aggressively each week:
"No, they are always a gameplan-specific defense, and that is why they are great. They try to point out your weakness, expose that and take away your strength. That is just the type of team they are so we will see how they are playing us and be able to react. It is just part of being an offense. We need to be able to adjust. It is some of the same messages I have been trying to speak throughout the season. We will see how teams are playing us and be able to play off that."
On resting his hip during the bye week and his status:
"I feel good. I got some rest and now I am ready to go."
On if it would have been tough to play last week had the Browns not been on bye:
"I do not know. Once you get adrenaline going… I am happy I got a week off."
On which Patriots defensive statistic stands out the most to him:
"They obviously get a lot of points off their turnovers, but a lot of the turnovers are on the offense's negative side of the field so it sets up their offense for automatic points. They take advantage of that. They do a good job of playing complementary football. The takeaways and the points off of it is the biggest stat to me."
On former Browns and current Patriots LB Jamie Collins Sr.'s performance this season:
"Jamie Collins is playing great. Obviously, he has a vital role there. He has been there before and just went right back in and they plugged him back in. He is making plays. Obviously, I have a lot of respect for Jamie being around him for a year. He is doing a good job."
On the potential for changes on the Browns OL and if there is a potential for 'too much change':
"I think if you look at last year with what we did with the offensive line, it kind of gave us a new energy to push forward. Whoever is in there, we need to trust and be able to play. That is what we have been kind of stressing. Whoever is in there, we trust them and we are going to attack."
On being fined by the NFL for complaining about officiating after the Seahawks game and if it was worth it:
"One, I would not say it was complaining when it was blatantly obvious. I would say that is just stating facts. Freedom of speech, I thought that is OK, but I get fined for it. That is the league. That is what they do. They fine you for some ridiculous things. It is just how it is. There is a reason everybody is talking about it. It is not just me. It goes for every team. With how our team is, we are not going to get a lot of calls and we know that. Especially going into this week, there is no time to worry about it and no time to stress about it. Just play our game."
On his statement that 'he would probably get fined for this' and if knew he would get fined:
"No, I knew I was going to get fined, but it needs to be said. People have to be held accountable for their job. When it affects my job, it sucks because it is not in my control."
On his self-assessment over the bye week and what areas he focused on most:
"Seeing what we needed as an offense. The success we had against the Seahawks – obviously, turnovers do not help, but we did a lot of good things. There was a lot of teach-tape from that game to see what we are good at and what we can build on. Realizing what we need to expand on and also what we can eliminate or not try as much anymore. There was a lot of 'what can I do to put this team in the best positon to win?' Obviously, [eliminating] turning the ball over is one."
On if the margin for error related to turnovers narrows when playing the Patriots:
"Yeah, they are going to try and get turnovers. That is just how they are. Have to take care of the ball, but we are going to have one-on-one matchups when they do pressure you and when they do want to hit you up so we have to be able to make plays."
On NY Jets QB Sam Darnold's comment on the sideline about 'seeing ghosts' when playing the Patriots:
"I watched the game. They were giving him a lot of looks up front and just blitzed him a lot. I do not know their gameplan so I can't speak for Sam. Obviously, they had certain things they wanted to have drawn up against their pressure, but they just did not execute it. That is the thing about football. You have to have to be able to have a plan and go execute it."
On the opportunity to go up against Brady and a team like the Patriots:
"For us, it is about us. It is a great challenge for us going up against a team like that, but we have to do our job. They are going to do everything they can to get us to not do our job well so we have to focus on that. Not worry about too much, focus on your job and do your 1/11th on offense, defense and special teams and go attack that each play. It is going to be a full fight, four quarters so we have to be able to do that."
On what a win against the Patriots could do for the team's confidence:
"It could be huge for us. Coming off the bye week and the momentum it could have for us going forward for the rest of the season and this long stretch we have, it could be huge for us."
On what stands out the most about Patriots CB Stephon Gilmore:
"His eyes are always in the right place. I think you combine that with his ball skills when the ball is in the air, he catches everything that comes his way and defends it well. DBs what makes them great is being able to play the ball while it is in the air, and he does that very well."
On if he expects Gilmore to match up with WR Odell Beckham Jr.:
"I would, but I have to be able to see how they are playing and react to it."
On the boost having RB Kareem Hunt back at practice:
"It is great to have him back out at practice. Obviously, he can't play for us for a few weeks, but it is good to have a guy like that out at practice. Just the energy level and also gives the defense a great look. He has fresh legs coming back and ready to roll."
On eliminating pre-snap penalties:
"Just be more accountable to yourself, more accountable to your teammates. You have to do your job. Stuff on the field is going to happen. You are going to get beaten every once in a while. You are going to have a physical mistake. The mental errors and things like that are things you have to take upon yourself and you have to be a man about it and do your job."
On the Patriots defense's goals to speed up QBs' decision-making processes and how to combat it:
"I think if your eyes are in the right place, you know exactly what your gameplan is and how you want to attack certain looks, then you will do a good job of that. If you let them with their different looks and variations of having linebackers in the line or DBs rolling around, you just have to do your job and not worry about what they are doing, have your eyes on your eyes and play ball."
On the significance of WR Rashard Higgins returning to play this week:
"We will see how the game plan unfolds and how much we have him involved, but obviously, Rashard and I have had chemistry. We will see how it plays out."
On if he tried to talk his wife, Emily, out of becoming a reporter:
"No, she hates being live on camera so she is kind of testing herself. It is good for her. It challenges her, but I am waiting in the shadows. They will clip it if she messes up."
On if Emily is officially part of the media now:
"She is not part of the media, no. She will never be what you are Tony (Grossi) (laughter)."
