Opening statement:
"Day 2. We have work to do. Been practicing. Tomorrow, we get to put on the pads, though. I told them that after practice. It turns up a little bit more. Guys get to bump into each other a little bit. We need to do that."
On what he is looking forward to most about practices in pads:
"Competition. Just watching guys compete. I know that everything will not be perfect – it is football – but I expect our offense to execute. I expect our defense to fundamentally do the things that they are supposed to do, special teams to keep getting better. Each and every day, as I told our team, every day we just want to keep getting a little bit. We have a long way to go before we ever get to a game. What is really important is that we just keep getting a little bit better every day."
On if the team can now really judge the OL with practices in pads:
"Absolutely. Not just the offensive line, the defensive line, the big guys. I keep telling our big guys that they are the heart and soul of this thing. They have to do their part offensively and defensively. It starts with those guys. Tomorrow, we will get a chance to start setting that identity that way. Those guys have to meet the challenge."
On OL Greg Robinson leaving practice:
"I think that he got hit in the head. Just got hit in the head. He will be OK. We have to evaluate him. Those things happen. It is football. Forearm, fist, whatever it was."
On if OL Austin Corbett would fill Robinson's tackle spot if Robinson does not practice on Saturday:
"I do not know. Corbett plays there anyway. He plays there from time to time. That is the versatility of the guys that we have. It is not so much if he can or if he can't. Corbett has been out there and doing those things. We are going to give everybody an opportunity like I said yesterday. Nothing has changed in that way, and we are going to keep going."
On reports that the Browns are negotiating with free agent WR Dez Bryant:
"I do not know anything about that. I can only talk about the guys that are on our football team right now. If that happens and we get other players on our team, trust me, I will be more than happy to answer any questions about those players at that time."
On if there are updates regarding free agent DB Bashaud Breeland:
"Not on our team. We have had a lot of people in and out of here. (General Manager) John (Dorsey) has done a good job that way. We have to do our due diligence on anybody that can help our football team. At the same time, they are not here so there is no point in talking about it."
On if the Browns could use another WR:
"We are always looking for good players. We can't get enough of those kind of guys, guys that can make plays with the ball. John is going to keep churning this thing as much as he can, keep finding talent and then see if it fits for us."
On his familiarity with free agent DB Adam Jones and if he could be a good fit for the Browns:
"He is not on our team right now. Obviously, I do know Adam. I know what kind of player he is and what kind of person he is. If that happens, if he is on our team, I would love to have him on our team, but he is not right now so we will keep off of that."
On if the Browns will have tackling periods in tomorrow's practice:
"Since I have been here, have we not live tackled? Yeah, I would hope so."
On if live siren periods with full tackling to the ground will return:
"I want it to break it out at the right time. I do not know if I want to do it tomorrow, but it is coming. I can promise you guys that. We are going to tackle. That is the only way to play football."
On if being a 'run over people' RB can shorten a player's career, referring to RBs Carlos Hyde and Nick Chubb:
"I do not have the answer to that. That is the science piece. You would have to find out about that. There have been some guys who run over players and play for a long time. I do not have that answer. They can make yards. That is what I want them to do. I want them to be able to produce first downs and touchdowns and make plays with the ball."
On Chubb:
"He is a football player and a really good football player. There is a lot to him more so than what people think because he just looks like the guy that comes downhill and here we go, but he has some versatility to him, as well. There are some instincts, real runners instincts that I see. I think that he is a talented runner. We are going to find out more about him when these pads come on."
On Browns players talking about making the playoffs this year:
"We have work to do. I love that our players are excited about the team that is in the locker room, but at the same time, statements do not mean anything; the action (does). I support our players whole-heartedly – no question about that – but this is so early in the game for us right now. What we need to do is put our head down, just work and just keep getting better as a football team each and every day. Hopefully, those things become a reality. You have got to believe something first before it ever happens. Our guys are saying those things, but at the same time, we have got to back it up. We have to work."
On balancing a player's talent with off-field issues when considering an acquisition, referring to Jones:
"I feel that any player like that – and not just Adam, any player – that has had issues, I would hope and I know that we would as a group collaborate and talk about it and know what the issues are. Hopefully, there is somebody in the group that understands exactly what has gone on with the player and has some answers. Obviously, when it comes to the name you mentioned, I do. I know the player. I am sure anybody else that has been that way, we always kind of go about it that way. Then, we make a decision as a group if we can handle it or we can't. If we can't, we will not bring him. If we can, then we will."
On expectation for DB Jabrill Peppers' return:
"Hopefully soon, sooner than later. Hopefully in the next week, I hope he is back out there, but do not hold me to that. There could be setbacks. It could be a lot of things. He is getting closer, I do know that."
On how Peppers was injured:
"Working out. That is normally how these things happen. Working really hard, you tweak something, and all of a sudden. Uou guys know me on this stuff, especially soft tissue injuries, I think you have to be really, really slow about these injuries because they can come back really fast."
On expectations for Peppers:
"Year 2 for him. He is a good football player. He is going to be playing a position that I think he feels is very natural playing down around the football so I am expecting big things."
On DB Denzel Ward earning a spot with the first-team defense quickly and competing with top WRs:
"Playmaking ability, and you said it, the game is not too big for him. Those moments are not too big for him. I think he makes plays in those situations, the pressure situation. That is what you are going to have to do. He is going to face some of the best receivers in the league. Think of the first game of the year. He is playing against (Steelers WR) Antonio Brown, the best guy on the planet. You better have really thick skin. He has that, and I think his teammates see that, but he has a lot of work to do between now and then."
On if the Browns need more depth at CB:
"This is what I think and where John is coming from: if there are players we can put on our football team to improve our team anywhere, [we will]. It is not just there, but I think we get that those positions sometimes dictate the game – cornerback position, being able to cover the best receiver in the league; wide receivers being able to score the ball from anywhere on the field. I think John and me both have that mindset that if someone can make us better and fit what we do, then let's take a great look at him. That is where we are going."
On if there is more to RB Carlos Hyde than what some see, similar to his comment on Chubb:
"There is no question in my mind about that. The guy caught 59 balls last year on top of running for close to 1,000 yards. He is very versatile, more so than people think. I think when you look at their body types, you see these big physical men who are 225+ pounds, and you think all they do is run in between the tackles. I think both of these guys have a little bit more versatility than that, and I think they bring a different dimension to our offense."
On continuing to emphasize running the football this year and if the team will be able to do so this year due to personnel or having leads in games:
"I want to have leads this year (laughter). More so than that, I just think it is the make-up of our team. You mention two of those guys there when you talk about Carlos Hyde and Chubb. They are guys that eat up ground. I think we have an offensive line definitely in the core from the center and both guards (OL Joel) Bitonio, (OL Kevin) Zeitler and now (OL Chris) Hubbard being over there and (OL Shon) Coleman, I think guys like to get after it. We have to have a mindset that we can do that, but at the same time, we have to do what it takes to win games. You guys know sometimes that means we might run it a ton, and sometimes we might have to throw it a ton. Whatever it takes, but we have to become a physical group, and be able to run the ball when we need to run it."
