On his reaction to being named Browns' starting QB and if it is a sense of relief:
"No, there's no sense of relief. You come out every day for an opportunity. I'm thankful that to (Head) Coach (Hue Jackson) that he believes in me. I'm thankful my teammates believe in me. I'm just going to get ready for today's practice, go out and get ready for Green Bay."
On how and when he found out that he was named the Browns starting QB:
"We found out this morning. Coach just brought us in the meeting and told us the news."
On if he sees positives to Jackson naming the starter now rather than later:
"It's always up to Coach and what he want to decide. All the other quarterbacks have done a lot to help me get to this point. We have a great room so I'm real appreciative of those guys, too."
On the emotion taking on the role as the Browns' starting QB:
"It's an honor. It's an honor to be one of the 32 in this league. You take that, you respect that and you continue to go out and work and try to get better."
On if he ever doubted that he would be a starting QB again after his last three seasons at Washington:
"You should never doubt. There is a quote out there and it says, 'If you don't believe, who will.' I'm thankful for my teammates and Coach Jackson, (Executive Vice President of Football Operations) Sashi (Brown) and all those guys for believing in me as a player and giving me an opportunity."
On agreeing with Jackson's statement that now it's his job to prove he should be the starting QB and if he feel like he still has something to prove:
"Oh, every day. You come out here. You work hard. You try to execute the offense to the best of your ability. It's an everyday thing. There is never a day off. There is never a sense of relief. You constantly have to be working to get better."
On what he showed Jackson to build confidence that he should be named starting QB:
"I don't know. You have to ask Coach. You really do. I just try to come out here, do the best I can and lead the guys the best I can. That's all I can do."
On if he better appreciates and understands this opportunity, given the past three years of his NFL career:
"Everything that you go through in life is a lesson. It's up to you to decide to use lesson that in a positive or negative way. Since I got here, I've been really thankful for the opportunity because they don't come around that often. When you get one, you have to seize it."
On if Jackson is creating an environment for Browns players to succeed and if he's experienced that feeling elsewhere:
"Yeah, I think Coach has done a great job of not just helping the quarterbacks succeed but putting us in positions – offensive lines wise, backs, wide receivers – giving guys an opportunity to make plays. That's all you want as an offensive guy is an opportunity to make a play. It's our job to go out and execute. He's done a good job of putting us in those positions, and guys have done a good job out here in training camp of making plays for him."
On his goal against Green Bay on Friday night:
"It's to go out and execute. That's always the goal. Any time you strap it up, you want to go win a game. Regardless of how long we play or whatnot, that's up to Coach. When we're in there, we'll be ready to go."
On if he always believed he would get another opportunity to become a starting QB:
"I think when you're going through tough times or going over hurdles in life, you always have to realize that those who don't give up are the ones that end up winning in the end. As long you don't give up and you keep working, you'll get another opportunity, but you have to live each day as if it's your last. You just try to get better at what you can and control what you can and pray that God takes care of the rest."
On what kept him from giving up:
"Just the belief in the guy upstairs, knowing that as long as I do my job, he'll always come through for you. I'm just really thankful for the opportunity."
On what he's improved most since signing with Cleveland:
"I don't know. You have to ask Coach that question."
On if he feels responsible for rewarding Jackson for his faith in him as a player:
"Coach, he gave me an opportunity to come to Cleveland to help do what he plans to do here, and that's turn this thing around and make it a consistent winner. I think all the guys that he kept on the roster, all 90 guys are excited about that opportunity because there are a lot of guys that aren't playing football right now. The guys that are here, we're focused on what Coach has in mind and it's what we all want. We all want to be winners and that's what we're working for. "
On the impression he left on Jackson prior to signing with the Browns:
"I can't give you the impression that I gave him. All I can say is I was honest about everything that I had been through and told him the lessons that I had learned and then did a workout. That's all you can do: Learn from your mistakes, learn from what's happened to you and then grow from that."
On the biggest lesson he learned from his experience:
"I don't need to say that."
On what is within his reach this year:
"It's not what's about what's within my reach. It's about this team. I think the sky is the limit. You never want to put a limit on what you want to do. Everybody believes they're going to go 16-0 right now. It's about who is going to go out and make that happen and win the most games and win when it's winning time. That's all we're focused on."
On if one of the most gratifying aspects is that the team is rallying around him:
"I think that's what you always want. You want to come out and show your teammates that they can trust you that you're going to get the job done, you're going to put them in the right positions to be successful and get them the ball. It's just been really enjoyable to come to a new city with a new coach on a new team and have an opportunity to just go out and play the game of football the way you love and do it with great people."
