CB Greg Newsome (10.23.23)
Greg, obviously came out with the win, but defensively, especially in that backfield, some issues tackling. What did you see out there and how do you respond heading into this week with what you were able to do out there on the field?
“Yeah, really. I just think we just got to play better. That’s just what it comes down to. We got to find a way to get guys on the ground, keep our eyes true, and we just got to overall play better in the back end, for sure.”
How do you expect to address that? I guess maybe in practice. With Jim Schwartz now as the defensive coordinator this year, this is the first time we’ve seen some of those breakdowns, really throughout the season. So how do you expect that to be approached in practice?
“It’s just sticking to the standard. I mean, I feel like we had a great week of practice. It just didn’t translate all the way to the game. And I don’t think we played a horrible game back there. We just gave up so many explosives, which is not in our identity. So, I mean, it’s just really sticking to the script. Going out there, keep practicing hard and keep trusting the process.”
Hey, Greg, after that 49ers game, you guys are talking like the boombox defense, all that business. How difficult is it to kind of not get full of yourselves and play with that same kind of intensity you had in that 49ers game?
“It’s not difficult at all. We’re going to stick to that. We’ve had that swag the whole entire season. We just didn’t play one great game, and we’ve been playing really good ball. I mean, it happens. It’s the NFL. guys get paid, too. We just got to stick to the script, like I said, and just trust each other out there and just continue to have great practices. I mean, it happens sometimes. Luckily, we had an offense that was out there to have our back. It’s complementary football. We’re definitely going to be better on defense, but it’s not difficult. We never get too high for ourselves. We know the room we got, and even in a game like that, we know what we’re capable of. So, we’ll fix it this week.”
Greg, are you running out of things to say about Myles Garrett and just what’s it like when you see him just take over a game the way he did in that first half?
“No, we were joking about it yesterday. We had grabbed some food after the game. I was like, ‘That’s why you get paid the big bucks.’ But nah, man, he’s amazing. I said it before, he’s the best defensive player in the league, and he’s going to go down as one of the greatest defensive players to ever play the game. So glad to have him on our team. And a guy like that was able to make so many plays for us out there and bail us out a few times. So, it’s just amazing to have him on our team.”
And a question on a couple of those long pass plays, two of them went for touchdowns, 75 yarder was results, missed tackles. But that first touchdown looked like a rare miscommunication. That’s something we’ve not seen from this year. Is that what happened on that particular play? And how do you guys make sure that doesn’t happen again?
“No, it wasn’t a miscommunication. We all knew what we were in. It’s just when we get stuff like that as a secondary, we got to realize our guys up front are going to attack. We’re going to have some offsides, we know that. I mean, those guys are trying to get out there and get to the quarterback, so we’re going to have some of those things. But as a secondary, we got to realize when those things do happen, we got to find a way to get deep because at the end of the day, it’s a free play. So that’s definitely on us as a secondary. We didn’t have a miscommunication on that play. We just got to keep our eyes better and play with better technique.”
Hey, Greg. It just seems like watching this defense this year, like, the mentality just feels so different. Like if something goes wrong, you guys always seem to bounce back, you bend, don’t break, all of that. I mean, I guess do you feel like that change from your earlier years in the league to now, to this year? Does something feel really different?
“For sure. I just think is just the confidence we play with. We’re playing with so much confidence. Obviously, we gave up 30 some points, but honestly, on the sideline and on the field, you wouldn’t be able to tell. Like on the sideline, we’re still pumped, we’re still jacked. We want to go back out there; we want to go make plays. So, it’s just so great to see from a defense that obviously didn’t have our best day, but at the end of the day, we didn’t flinch and we made enough plays for us to get the win. So, it definitely feels a lot different. We’re just a lot more confident.”
Do you think it’s the part that Jim (Schwartz) plays in that plus the new guys? It doesn’t seem like there’s one root cause of that confidence. Is that fair to say?
“Yeah, I would say it’s a multitude of things. Obviously, Coach Schwartz is at the forefront of this. I think he’s given us so much confidence and even him on the sideline – next play, make a new play. So, we’re not dreading on the sideline because we’re giving up plays. We’re continuing to play, but I think Coach Schwartz is at the forefront of that energy that we bring.”
Obviously, when you talk about the conference not being shaken, when you look at how the (Indianapolis) Colts were able to have some success yesterday, did you feel like they showed anything that you guys might be vulnerable to moving forward?
“Not really. It just really comes down to just attacking up front and then us as a secondary. I mean, we haven’t given up that many explosive passes the whole entire season, and we gave up, I think might have been three or four that game. So that’s definitely on us. In the back end, we got to play better. We’re going to play some man, we’re going to do some things like that. And when we play, man, we got to win. And Coach Schwartz is confident in us to win. So, at the end of the day, we just got to find a way to win. And as a secondary, we’re going to be better next week.”
And when you talked about the offsides and then having to keep playing, do you feel like guys let up for a second because you could tell that Myles jumped on those two plays?
“Yeah, for sure. I mean, even me personally, I’ve seen it, and we kind of just chill. But we kind of got to have that mindset when they do jump, get deep, because they’re just going to throw one up. And whether it’s complete or not, it’s going to be their ball anyway. Or even if we pick it, it’s still going to be their ball. So, yeah, we just can’t get complacent on those plays.”
Greg, I have two things for you real quick. The first one is you’ve been super supportive of Deshaun (Watson) and making sure that everybody knows that you guys have his back and all that kind of stuff. So just wondering, did you have any words of encouragement for him or anything when he was over there on the sidelines kind of being disappointed he couldn’t be out there helping you guys win?
“No, just, man, we got your back. I tell him that every time, and I tell that to every quarterback and every offensive player that walks off that field, we got your back no matter what. We obviously support them. So that was just the only words I always tell him, we got your back.”
And just also wondering in the life of a cornerback, when the game is on the line like that, did you almost, in a way, feel for (Darrell) Baker, for getting those calls at the end? Because sometimes they can go either way and they decide a game. I mean, what’s it like to have to live on the edge like that all the time?
“It’s horrible, honestly. But at the end of the day, you kind of can’t put it in the hands of the officials. So that’s why we kind of preach being technically sound and keeping our hands low and things like that because at the end of the day, that’s just how the league is now. A lot of those 50/50 calls are going to go to the offense. So, you just kind of got to find a way to be a technician and don’t play with your hands, don’t be as grabby.”
Hey, Greg, I asked Wyatt (Teller) this, too, but you’ve got a different perspective because you’re playing an entirely different position. What is it like to play in a game that has eight lead changes, that feels like it is constantly hanging in the balance and you are constantly in a spot where you got to make a play?
“Yeah, honestly, it’s not fun. Obviously, we would love to win a game by 30 every single time and be easy, but honestly, those are moments that I live for and as a defense, we live for that. Finding a way to get that one stop because there are going to be games where teams are scoring, we’re scoring. It’s a battle, but it’s whoever can make that one play to win the game. So, when it’s games like that and we get to get on the field and get our offense to stop and get them the ball back, we live for moments like that. So, it’s definitely not fun at all. I’ll tell you that. I’d rather win the game by 30 or make sure the game is over already, but when we’re out there, we’re just like, ‘Let’s get the ball back for offense.'”
Take us inside your mentality. And which is more difficult for you when you’re playing in a game like the one you just played that can be mentally exhausting because you can’t seem like you take a play off? Or is it more difficult when a situation pops up where you’ve got to turn the switch on and maybe you’ve been on cruise control because you’ve got a 20-point lead for a bit?
“More difficult? I would say they’re both kind of difficult. Honestly, this one, when our offense is rolling like that, I’d rather be in this situation knowing we get that one stop. Get them the ball. They’re rolling. So, they’re both pretty difficult though, for sure.”
We talk about complimentary football and even on the defense, how you guys boost each other up and keep that confidence. But when you are on the sideline and you’re seeing the offense get that game winning drive or Corey Bojorquez give you guys good field position, Dustin Hopkins make a really good field goal. What do you say to those members of the Browns and how does that kind of play into how you guys go out there as a defense and want to play for them?
“Yeah, we just say, ‘Man, love you guys’. We got each other back. You know, Kareem (Hunt) constantly comes over to us, ‘We got you guys. Get us a stop.’ Like, that’s just how we are as a team. If they get stopped, we tell them, ‘Don’t worry, we got you. We’re going to get you the ball back.’ So, I think it’s just that complementary football and just us being, honestly, a band of brothers, I feel like we all are so close on both sides of the ball. And when one side of the ball is not playing well, like the defense wasn’t playing that well, the offense is coming to us saying, ‘Look, just get us a stop. Get us the ball back. We’re going to win it.’ So, I love being on this team. It’s definitely complimentary football.”
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