— Browns right guard Kevin Zeitler didn't practice Wednesday after a procedure on his thumb, but the Browns expect him to play Sunday at Baltimore. "I think he will be right back out here very quickly, hopefully tomorrow or Thursday," head coach Hue Jackson said, "but I think Kevin will be up and ready to go."
Jackson added Zeitler — who joined the team in free agency following six seasons with the Bengals — might have to wear a cast but, "he's not going to miss any time, I do know that."
— There's more to quarterback than throwing the football. That's something Jackson has stressed since coming to Cleveland and it was dynamic he zeroed in on when naming rookie DeShone Kizer the Browns starter last month. As such, the 21-year-old has taken to coming into the team's facility early and leaving late. Jackson, quarterbacks coach David Lee and others are right there with them.
"That's just part of it. This is your job. It's what you do. There's a process to it and we work through it. There are things we do early and things we do late. It's just who he is," Jackson said. "This is going to become who DeShone Kizer, and he understands that. That is the commitment you have to make to this football team and this organization."
— Ten-time Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas has yet to miss a snap since he was drafted by the Browns in 2007. He needs just four more to eclipse the 10,000 mark on Sunday.
"He's amazing. You guys know how I feel about Joe Thomas. What he's done and how he's done it is remarkable to me," Jackson said. "We're talking about a guy who has never missed a snap. That's kind of unheard of ... I think our players see that, too. I think a lot of that rubs off in our locker room. You talk about a guy who is an 'Iron Man', That's a true 'Iron Man'. That's truly what it's all about."
"I don't know if I have taken 10,000 snaps ever of football in my life, and he's done it in the NFL," Kizer added. "Obviously, he's a unicorn and he's going to have a gold coat coming soon. To be here alongside of him and to be a small piece of what he has been able to do in this league is an honor for me."
— Joe Schobert continues to impress in his second season. The middle linebacker led the Browns with nine tackles Sunday, building upon a promising preseason in which he was seemingly all over the field. "He's done an outstanding job. I saw it in training camp, I told you guys that before. He's not surprising to me," Jackson said. "I think he fits the system that we're running on defense and I think it's the right fit for him and he's demonstrating that."
Schobert, a fourth-round pick in 2016, played in 16 games and started four last season.
"I think there are some things he's still growing at, but he has been very productive for our defense and leading our defense," Jackson said. "Our middle linebacker is our quarterback and he's done a great job of getting guys in the right play calls defensively for our defensive unit. Is he still growing? Yes. That means there is a lot of good football ahead for him, but he has done an outstanding job in my opinion."
— The Browns have confidence in a run game that sputtered against the Steelers. After falling behind early, Cleveland totaled 57 yards on 25 carries. Jackson — who believes the ground game will "turn a corner" soon — said he expected some growing pains on an offensive line with three new starters. "We haven't played that much together, but we are going to improve," left guard Joel Bitonio said. "We are going to work to improve it and we will see. Pittsburgh did a good job of slowing us down Week 1."
