On his focus for starting training camp:
"Just coming out and putting great practices together. Of course, leading the group on the offense but also being a leader on the team, the first couple of days are critical because the guys have had a break to be away, and we want to make sure the focus is the same as we get better each and every day, going out there and attacking the goal."
On what he can do to help Browns players on the team last season to move past 0-16:
"Let them know that it is a new year. Even if you were a part of it last year, it is a fresh start now. Learn from last year. No matter how good or how bad the season was, this season is a totally new year and be excited about the opportunity we have in front of us to go out and win games, change the culture and change the perception of this team."
On his reaction when learning WR Josh Gordon would not be with the team to open training camp:
"I just wanted to know the details of it. More importantly, I am a friend of Josh Gordon so I want him to be right mentally and physically. Whatever he has to do to get himself together to come out and play at a high level for us, then I am all for it. More so, a friend than a teammate."
On if the news came as a surprise to him:
"It came as a surprise to me. I'm sure it came as a surprise to a couple of guys. Like I said, whatever he has to do to take time to get himself right and to be able to come back to this team and contribute, we are all for it. We stand behind him. We support him 100 percent."
On if he has spoken to Gordon:
"I have not had the chance to talk to him."
On if he has reached out to Gordon:
"Yes, I have. We are at the start of training camp so the time to stop and talk to people outside of the facility is definitely very small. At the same time, he is focusing on bettering himself. Like I said, you have to respect that and give him his time and his space to get everything situated and come back and play at a high level."
On how Gordon's absence will affect the team:
"Of course, we know that Josh has tremendous talent, but we also have a bunch of talented guys in that wide receiver room. If you were here in the spring, you have seen the competition day in and day out that those guys brought to the field each and every day. There are a ton of opportunities for guys to go out and make plays. Of course, you care for your brother, but at the same time, those guys are welcoming the opportunity to go out to show the coaches what they can do, as well as show the team what they can do."
On his familiarity with free agent WR Dez Bryant:
"I have not played with him, obviously. I have only watched him. He is a great player. I am a fan of his. Like I said, the wide receiver room now has a ton of talent, he can only add to that. I do not obviously make decisions for our organization, I they feel that Dez or anyone else that they could bring in could help our organization, then I stand behind them 100 percent."
On WR Corey Coleman:
"He is very athletic. He catches the ball with confidence. I did not know how fast he was until I started throwing to him. The deep passes, he can definitely go get them. It is hard to over-throw him. Just overall athletic ability. He has every tool. This is definitely a big season for him. We know it as a team. He knows it as a person and as a player. He is excited for the opportunity that he has right now."
On offensive coordinator Todd Haley building the offense, including with new personnel on the team:
"It is a work in progress, but as players, we have to take ownership of whatever the coach calls. It is up to me to get everyone on the same page. We have a flexible scheme for us to go out and create big plays and make plays on our own. As players, we have to take ownership and go out there and make the plays happen."
On his interactions with Haley:
"They have been great. Of course, a smart person. He has been around a lot of football, been around a lot of schemes. He has coached a bunch of great players. As a player, you like to gain as much knowledge from his as possibly because he has been to those big games and played in multiple big games. You want to know what it takes each and every day to get there."
On the Browns offensive players working out together this offseason and the videos on Instagram:
"Videos or no videos, we were just out there trying to get work, work with each other and build chemistry. We had a five, six-week break. In that time, guys went off and did their own training, spend some family time. As we approached camp, just wanted to get everybody back on the same page, make sure everyone was in condition and on the same page to come out and make plays. This is a new group as a whole. All of the quarterbacks are new, a majority of the skill positions on offense are new. Of course with new pieces, you want to get everybody on the same page because the opportunity for us to turn this organization around is this year, and we want to do whatever it takes to get everybody on the same page and everybody going in the right direction."
On being part of the Browns organization:
"It is a football city, a city that loves football. The organization lately has had a bad rap the past couple of years, but worldwide, they are known for football. This city deserves a winning team, and I am going to do everything in my power to go out there and produce that, as well as help with the other guys on the team – offense, defense and special teams. It is a collective effort, and we are working hard each and every day to do that."
On mentions of the Browns potentially reaching the playoffs and expectations to do so:
"The goal every year is to win the Super Bowl. You ask any player, and their goal is to win a Super Bowl. Of course, to get to that you have to get in the playoffs. My mindset has always been one game at a time, starting even with preseason. Just gradually getting better week in and week out and doing whatever it takes to go 1-0 that week. If we stack enough of those 1-0s, we will be in the playoffs and you will be in the Super Bowl conversation. Just taking it one day at a time. We have a lot of work to do, and today is the first chance we have to do that."
On NFL and NFLPA revisiting the National Anthem policy:
"Like I said back in the spring, I think the conversation should just be more so about what we can do to help our community out in each respective city that has an NFL team, as well as other cities and communities that do not have NFL teams – how can we help the community out and bring the conversation back to one that is not divided? Whatever it takes to get to that point. I know here with Mr. Jimmy and Mrs. Dee Haslam, they do a great job of being open in conversation with us. Hopefully, it is the same everywhere, but it is more so about how can we impact the community in a positive way."
On if he has an opinion on how players should approach the National Anthem:
"I can't speak for everyone. You are entitled to your own opinion. The decisions that you make, remember that you have to live with them, too. I do not know if there is a right or wrong answer right now. Like I said, the perceptions of the community should definitely be pushed in a different way."
On if there is pressure within teams to follow a player's lead as it relates to the National Anthem:
"I do not think there is any peer pressure. Our ownership and our management have done a good job of being open in communication here. Like I said, I can't speak for the other 31 teams if that is the same. They have been good as far as communication and letting us be ourselves within the organization."
On if he takes a leadership role in helping keep attitudes positive after learning Gordon would not begin training camp with the team:
"(Head Coach) Hue (Jackson) addressed the team in yesterday's team meeting and gave us his outlook on it. As a team and as an offense, we stand by him and his decision. There is work to be done and an opportunity each and every day for us to get better. That is what we have to focus on."
On the importance of organizing workouts with teammates this offseason:
"We had a great time in L.A. working out. It was not about the cameras or anything. I just wanted to get everybody on the same page and get out there and get some work before we got back for training camp."
On the Browns RBs:
"Every guy that we have in the running back room is definitely talented, especially when those guys get the ball in their hands, whether it is in the passing game or running game. I am excited to see what those guys do with the ball in their hands in game time. Very comfortable with that room. I think the competition in that room and the level of talent in that room definitely brings out the best in each guy."
