Head Coach Kevin Stefanski (4.16.24)

Opening Statement:

“Okay, first, want to say congratulations to Christian Kirksey, Rashard Higgins retiring as Browns today, which I think is a pretty cool deal having those guys in the building today. It’s also great to have our team in the building. Starting yesterday was the first day of school. As you know, this building is at its best when it has players in here, It’s boring when they’re not here. So, we were very excited to see their smiling faces coming in this building and get some work in yesterday and today. And as you know, phase one, we’re in the classroom with the guys, then they’re in the weight room, they’re on their own in there with the strength coaches. So, phase one, two weeks’ worth of getting some really solid work in, and I think it’s been a really positive first couple days. So excited about that. With that I will take any questions.”

 

Do you save your ‘welcome back’ address until training camp or did you do it yesterday?

“I mean, it’s a little bit of both, Tony. I think part of yesterday is welcome back and checking in on the guys and seeing how everybody’s doing of course, and see where everybody’s been. And then you also have mandatory minicamp as another mile post in this, and then to your point you have training camp, which really kicks off that season, but in a lot of ways, yesterday is the first day of the 2024 season.”

 

I know you’re not doing any practicing yet, but what are your expectations for Deshaun (Watson) as we go through this, and how much do you expect him to throw over the next couple months?

“Yeah, they have a very very good plan. Deshaun (Watson), the medical team, of ramping him up and throwing. He’s doing all the things he’s supposed to be doing when it comes to rehab. So, when we get to those points in OTAs and minicamp, we’ll go with what’s suggested by the medical team, but he’s doing a great job.”

 

With the timeline now crystallized a little bit with Nick Chubb coming off those two surgeries. Do you have a better idea how much more time he’s going to need to be able to return?

“I don’t know that we’ll go past today and this week, at least that’s the way I’m looking at it. I can promise you he’s working very hard. Early in the morning, he’s here, he’s attacking his rehab. That’s the best way I can put it. When he’s ready, he’ll be ready.”

 

In Orlando Andrew (Berry) said he was going to start running that week is he (Nick Chubb), in fact, doing that?

“I’m not going to get into the specifics of the rehab, but he’s (Nick Chubb) doing everything he’s supposed to be doing.”

 

Kevin, how do you think the throwing will work out? Do you think that Jameis (Winston) will get a ton of work? Will you guys kind of take it easy with Deshaun (Watson) as you ramp him up? And that will give Jameis (Winston) and Tyler (Huntley) a lot of work.

“We’ll try to do whatever appropriate, Mary Kay (Cabot) and for me, that’s leaning on the medical staff and Deshaun (Watson) and making sure that we have a plan and we’ll stick to it, obviously, with constant communication between all parties. If there’s days where, you know, it’s next man up Jameis (Winston) will get some more throws, which I think is great for him as well, but we’ll really work all of that out as we get into those days.

 

How about your tackles Kevin, Jack Conklin, (Jedrick) Wills and Dawand (Jones), how are they?

“They’re all doing great. All of them are at different points in their rehab. Those are three different injuries, same position, but three different injuries. So we’re going to treat them as such. But again, these guys are working very hard to get back ASAP.”

 

As far as the offensive meetings at this point, is (Ken) Dorsey starting to unveil your new playbook?

“Sure, of course, that’s what coach (Ken) Dorsey is doing right now with the offense and then with the quarterbacks as well, trying to catch these guys up on a bunch of the things that we’re doing. Some are the same, some are different, but coach Dorsey is doing a really nice job.”

 

How important is this time of the year when you have so much change among that offensive staff?

“I think you can get a lot of work done in April, both as a team and as a unit and as a coaching staff. I would tell you it’s really fun to watch our coaches coach. It’s fun for me to sit in meetings and listen to our coaches coach, whether it’s coach (Jim) Schwartz or Bubba (Ventrone), coach (Ken) Dorsey, our position coaches, and then when we finally get out on the field to watch them work because that’s what we’re here to do. So it’s fun to watch these guys get going. Now, as you can imagine in day two, you don’t throw the entire playbook at the guys, so you’re taking a very measured approach to how you put together the schemes and what you’re doing. This first week is in a lot of ways an onboarding week and bringing guys up to speed on our position expectations. Some of the basics of our scheme and then really spending time with each player and going over an improvement plan, if you will, making sure these guys understand that each one of them is expected to get better, and here are the ways we’re going to help them do that.”

 

Kevin, a year ago, the defense was where the offense is this year, learning a new scheme and everything. How does that change for the defense this year now coming in year two, is there an expectation to be a little farther advanced when they get in the classroom?

“(Jim) Schwartz hit that with the defense yesterday as well. It is year two in the system, so you’re building off of a lot of what we did last year and there’s varying levels of understanding. There’s some guys that are second year players in the NFL, and then there’s Rodney McLeod, there’s Denzel (Ward), guys that have been in this game for a little bit, so all of them can brush up, if you will, on the system. And then we’re going to challenge them. We’re going to, obviously, in year two, you’re going to add some things and maybe subtract a few things, but we’ll challenge each one of these guys, whether they were here previously or not.”

 

 When you get to the practice field, some of the offensive changes, are they going to be real noticeable or more subtle?

“Yeah, I think it’s a good question Daryl (Ruiter). I think it’s probably a better question for you guys, you tell me when you see it. I think that’s one of those things with us. We love to watch tape of different teams and steal from other teams and evolve and that type of thing. There are certain things within that process that are very, very, very subtle that you may not pick up on, and it may be how we call things or how we rule things. For any player, an offensive lineman, a wide receiver, some of their rules may change, so it may not be as overt, but I think it’s something that happens every season in this league where you have to be evolving. You cannot stay the same. I just think the other coaches in this league are too good, and if you just throw it up on the board and say, ‘hey, it worked last year, it’s going to work this year’ I just don’t think that’s fair, I have too much respect for the other coaches and players in this league.”

 

What kind of challenges does it present you that you’ve got Deshaun (Watson) coming off the injury, you’ve got a new offensive coordinator, a whole new staff, a new receiver, trying to put the whole thing together, and yet you have to ramp him up and kind of take your time with him a little bit.

“I think that’s our job, Mary Kay (Cabot), is to put the system together with the players in mind. And obviously we’ll make sure that we are smart about Deshaun’s (Watson) rehab, focus on getting him ready for the season and when he’s ready to contribute in practice, he’ll be out there based on what the medical staff tells us. Now having said that, we’re putting the system together, we’re full speed ahead and in these meeting rooms and when we get out on that practice field, we’re constantly trying to get better as an offense, but we’re not going to speed Deshaun (Watson) up just to get the offense sped up.”

 

Kevin, along those lines, I mean, the running back room, obviously you guys have a handful of new guys and Duce (Staley) being the new position coach in the room. What’s it like just kind of figuring out the day to day when you also have Nick (Chubb) going through the rehab and, not being sure entirely what he’s going to be able to do and just planning out how that’s going to look like day to day in the off season?

“Yeah, I think you guys will really enjoy watching, speaking of watching coaches coach, you’ll enjoy watching Duce (Staley) coach. You’ll hear Duce (Staley) coaching before you see him. He’s somebody that played this game at a high level, has coached it at a high level. I think he’s a really well-respected voice in this building and in the league and certainly in that running back room. Those guys will understand what’s expected of them. Like you mentioned, Ashley, there are a bunch of new faces and that’s our job as coaches and players, is to get to know each other right now, that’s a huge part of this offseason program. So that is definitely happening in the running back room. And to your point, it’s happening from player to player, coach to player as well.”

 

Kevin, injuries are always part of this, and you guys certainly had your share last year in terms of like any best practices are there any major changes in terms of conditioning, downtime, anything like that, to keep these guys as healthy as possible?

“It’s a good question, we look at everything. Certainly, you want to keep guys available to your team as much as you can within reason. We know football can be a violent sport and a physical sport, and there’s certain things that we know aren’t going to change about the game as it’s being played. But we always want to be smart about how we operate in this building, whether it be from training, from the weightroom, how we meet, how we structure the day. Certainly something that we’re constantly looking at. And if there’s a way to positively affect player availability, we’ll certainly explore those things.”

 

We asked you at the combine, working with Ken Dorsey and working on this offense, if there was a shared philosophy that you guys had gotten together, now that you’ve had the time to really make the playbook and you’re heading into these workouts, have you identified something that is a staple point for you guys in the offense?

“I would just tell you, Cam (Justice), that from a philosophical standpoint, we see the game very similarly, and those are the type of things that we’re talking to our players about and how we’re trying to structure our offense. And I think you’ll hear from Ken (Dorsey) and the players as we get going. But so much of this is very similar to how we have always seen it, which is to be an attacking offense and be multiple in a bunch of different ways. How it all unfolds is still something that, in phase one, you’re trying to put pieces together and install your system so that you can evolve as you see what players are emerging, see what players come out of the draft, for instance, so that you are ready to put the offense together that fits your guys best.”

 

Where are you at on the offensive play calling decision?

“We’re not there. I’ll let you. I said I’ll let Tony (Grossi) know first, then Tony can tell you Jake (Trotter).”

 

This is a serious question, has any offensive player asked you who’s calling plays?

“No.”

 

Mike Vrabel, Kevin, can you explain what his role is now with the team?

“Yeah, coach (Mike Vrabel) Vrabes has been awesome having him up here for a few weeks this offseason. For me and for us, we’re just excited to add a really smart football person into our building. A guy who’s had success as a player, a guy who’s had success as a coach. He’s a huge resource for me, he’s a huge resource for Andrew (Berry) in different, in varying ways. The exact role, how it unfolds, that’s really up to him. And making sure that, I’m not asking too much of him, if you will, but I just don’t think you can have enough good people. I’ve been told you can’t have enough good Buckeyes as well.”

 

Is he (Mike Vrabel) here right now?

“We’re not doing attendance right now, so I can’t tell you whether or not he’s here.”

 

Is there a role for him at this stage of your season?

“Yes, but there’s certain things you don’t have to be in the building to do as well.”

 

What kind of energy Jameis (Winston) is going to bring, what kind of leadership he’s going to bring to the table for you guys.

“I think when you spend time with Jameis (Winston), you definitely get a sense for the type of energy he brings. A very positive energy, whether it’s in the building, in the weight room, in the hallway, in the meeting rooms. He’s somebody that is constantly wanting to get to the bottom of what we’re doing from a playbook standpoint. And in the weight room, he’s here early, he stays late. Really impressed with what Jameis is going to bring to this football team.”

 

Is (Nyheim) Hines still rehabbing from the ACL?

“He is.”

 

Is he able to be on the field?

“Not sure.”

 

Kevin, how much Bubba (Ventrone) talked about impact of the new kickoff rule and how much has he sort of gotten and tried, you know, think of ways that, to take advantage of that new rule?

“We’ve spent a lot of time on that Chris (Easterling), Bubba (Ventrone), myself, Steven Bravo-Brown, coach (Mike) Vrabel has helped in this as well because we’re all trying to understand this hybrid kickoff. It’s new for everybody. So, we look at that as a great opportunity in this league to add an exciting play for this game, and it’s another touch for an offensive player. It’s another opportunity to get a tackle for a defensive player or an offensive player on special teams. We’re excited about what it is, but we’re working through it, I don’t think anybody in the league can tell you exactly how it’s going to look, but that’s an opportunity for us so we’ve spent a lot of time on the board with it. Bubba’s been in the indoor, literally with a helmet on, taking drops, which is true. So we want to be as prepared as we can be. But I don’t know that there’s any club that knows exactly how it’s going to look.”

 

Do you think it’s going to impact the roster?

“Potentially. It’s another good question. Potentially, I don’t know, because without knowing exactly how the play looks, you have some ideas, and you try to think about what player and what bodytype may make more sense for that play now that it’s the hybrid kickoff. But I really don’t know if anybody knows for sure.”

 

That’s another coaching challenge for you guys to figure this out not just you, but the other 31 teams because the kickoff, as the league has talked about it, had just become ceremonial with touchbacks. Setting aside your coaching hat for a moment, is that something that you feel the league kind of needed to do was find a way to get that play when you talk about ‘it’s another opportunity for an offensive player touch the ball’, is that something the league needed to do as far as find a way to make that play similar to what they did with the PAT?

“Good question. We’re in favor of keeping the ‘foot’ in ‘football’. We’re in favor of an exciting play for our fans. I think our players understand that while we may not know exactly what it looks like, it’s going to involve blocking and tackling and running. So, it’s still the game that we know, the play will be new, and again, I don’t want to make it seem like I know exactly what the play is going to be like. I know what the rules are, I know how we’re drawing it up and how we’re going to teach it. But we have to be ready to evolve as the season goes and people are starting to try different schemes. I think that’s the exciting part for us. But at the end of the day, we’re adding an exciting play back into the game.”

 

Obviously not taking attendance right now like you mentioned, but for guys that aren’t here now and maybe throughout the spring, just how do you go about keeping them in the loop on things and making sure that they’re getting up to speed on some new things like with the offense?

“It’s a good question. You know, for us, we really focus on the guys that are here. It’s just how the rules are, it’s a voluntary program. The guys that are here, we coach them up. The guys that aren’t here, we’re excited to see them when they come back. Certain guys, as you know, will come in maybe next week for instance, but that’s just something that we continue to work through and we’ll catch the guys up when we see them.”

 

How is Dorian (Thompson-Robinson) coming along and do you anticipate he’ll be throwing during OTA’s at all?

“He’s another one of those guys in that training room working very, very hard. He’s doing a great job in there. He’s doing a great job in the meetings. We’ll see when he’s ready to go. That’s when the doctors tell us he’s ready, he’ll be ready.”

 

Is there a new weightroom in the fieldhouse yet?

“Have you guys been back there? There’s construction, it’s ongoing. It’s right outside my office. So there’s been a few times where I damn near jumped out of my desk. But they’re doing a nice job back there. It’s going to be pretty special. And obviously, I think we’ll spend some time back there and show you guys what’s going on. Our players are very excited about it, I can tell you. It’s another example of Dee and Jimmy (Haslam) and the resources that they’re willing to put into this football team is very much appreciated from myself and our players.”

 

Was there a half a second where you thought about doing the awkward dad dance at the final four?

“There was not a half a second. No, there was less than that.”