On the difficulty preparing for a team after playing the same unit four weeks ago:
"It is the same. It would be the same if we were playing the Seahawks or anybody else. I do not think we put any special emphasis on just because we played them twice. We still are game planning on what they have done in the past and they are going to do the same for us."
On the Browns offense's recent red zone efficiency:
"I think it is execution, maybe a sense of urgency. Once you get into that area of the field, you know that you can get points. You know that you have got points and you are trying to get touchdowns. I think it goes back to players executing in critical situation."
On his relationship with General Manager John Dorsey:
"I think John is one of the best in the business. I thought that since the first day I was here. We did a good job of kind of revamping the roster over the offseason from when I got here in January to now. It continued to happen during the course of the year, and I think that is the mark of a good personnel guy. I think he fits the bill. (WR Breshad) Perriman has been a nice surprise. Even though we traded (Jaguars RB) Carlos (Hyde), we did have (RB) Nick (Chubb) behind him and we knew what we had in Nick. It is nothing that Carlos did not do. It is just that we wanted to get Nick some plays, and we did it."
On who informed him he was going to be Browns offensive coordinator:
"Mr. Jimmy (Haslam) and John. They did. I probably was not (Head Coach) Gregg's (Williams) first choice, but hell, I am here (laughter). Hell, he was not mine either (laughter). I am just kidding. I think both of us were put in tough situations. I think we both have done fairly well. It goes back to it is all about the players. It is the players making plays and the players being good in critical situations. Sometimes as coaches, we put a little more emphasis on ourselves than we do everybody else. More importantly, it is those other people that make you successful or not."
On if he has been able to 'catch his breath' and reflect on his experience with the Browns and as offensive coordinator:
"No, sir. Not at all. I do not think I have since the day I started coaching. I learned in this business you put your head down and you work, and you try to get better each and every day. That is what I have tried to do throughout my whole career and look at where you are at 10, 12, 15 years from now, not to mention even next week or tomorrow."
On a report from FOX Sports' Jay Glazer that he has 'locked up' the offensive coordinator positon for next season:
"Jay knows more than I know, I guess (laughter). I am serious when I tell you I do not advertise for jobs. I do not have to and I will not ever. I heard the other day somebody say something about how I was not ready to be a head coach. I mean, who the hell is ready to be a head coach? Do you have a résumé that you check off a list and everything? I am not worried about head coach, coordinator – I do not care. I am just trying to do the job that I am doing right now today and then do a good job tomorrow and then the next day, and then see where I am at the end of the year. I really truly do not put any thought into beyond this week."
On what he does once a season is over:
"I am going to go home and spend some time with my family. I have two daughters and a wife. We are going to spend some time together. This year is not going to be like any other year. I am going to do the same thing and reintroduce myself to them."
On if he misses the daily grind once a season is over:
"I think to be a football coach and to do it the way that you are supposed to do it, you are supposed to embrace the grind. I do embrace the grind, but I also enjoy my time off with my family. I think in this business more than anything else, you need to have balance. You have to have balance in your life. Whether that is faith, football and family, you have to have balance with those things. I think I do a good job of that. That way, you are not robbing any part of your life to repay another. You just do a good job in all areas and see where you are."
On if he wants to return to the Browns next season:
"I like it here. I like it here a lot. Everybody around here knows that I like it here. I love the town of Cleveland. Cleveland and I get along well. I did not have a dad as a coach. did not have a starting point in this league. I grew up the son of a tire maker at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber plant in Gadsden, Alabama. (Dr.) Benjamin E. Mays said, 'Those who start behind in the game of life, must start running faster to catch up.' I feel like I have been running fast my whole life. That is the way it is going to continue. Whether it is here or what, I am just here to do a job right now this week and this year."
On if he has to remind himself not to think past this week or look ahead past this season:
"I promise you I am not worried about two weeks from now. I can promise you that. I am worried about getting these guys on offense ready to play this game. This is a big game for us because it is the first step of doing what we want to accomplish. I think that is where we have tried to maintain the focus."
On Mayfield not being as accurate against the Broncos:
"I think the altitude just got him – I am just kidding (laughter). The quarterback's accuracy is not just the quarterback. The quarterback's accuracy has to do with people being in the right spot and him being able to throw the ball on time, and there are a lot of things that go into a quarterback being accurate. Now in saying that, I am sure he could tell you he could be a little bit more accurate and he will. He could be from a standpoint he does not have his feet set, but you know that is a misnomer, too. How many times does a quarterback have his feet set when he throws the ball? Baker is a very accurate quarterback. We are not worried about his accuracy at all. We just want to get guys open and complete them."
On Mayfield mentioning using his eyes better and coaching points for it:
"Any specific play you have an area on the field or a defender you want to… A lot of times the quarterback has to know why a guy is going to be open, and it is because of something a defender does. He needs to make sure that his eyes are in the right area of the field to tell what that defender is doing whether or not he knows that receiver is going to be open. Now, it is the receiver's job to get open when it comes up, and I think that is what we have tried to do."
On if Mayfield may have been overly amped up in the first half against the Broncos:
"I think it goes back to something I said a couple weeks ago. When we went to Houston, it was the first time – I use this word very carefully – that this team had been into a playoff-type atmosphere. We did not handle that very well in the first half. We handled it pretty well starting the game in Denver, which was the second time out with that type of environment. I think with him, he handled it well to start with and then we hit a lull, but the lull again did not only have to do with him. It had to do with me, it had to do with the guys running routes, the protection and everything. This is an all-encompassing team deal when you start dealing with a quarterback. Now, Baker is special, but he needs support around him. He just can't be the only one. Everybody takes ownership in that, and I think that is where we have been."
On Mayfield's recent success in the red zone:
"His execution has picked up, and the people around him, their execution has picked up. Sometimes with guys, a sense of urgency helps their execution level, and I think that has been the case."
On Mayfield's pre-snap adjustments on the TD to WR Antonio Callaway and how that compares to NFL QBs and rookie QBs:
"I think everybody around him views Baker as a rookie, but from the standpoint from the pictures that he has taken with his eyes on an every play basis, he is not a rookie. Baker, he knows what he is allowed to do and what he is not allowed to do, and he is allowed to do that if he sees something – as long as it works (laughter). The play we had called, he knew it was not very good so he changed the play to one of our favorite red zone plays against them, and he got to that play."
On if it has always been one of his goals to become a head coach, understanding his mindset of never campaigning for a next job:
"Definitely, no doubt."
