WR coach Adam Henry and Pass game coordinator/secondary coach Joe Whitt (8.6.19)
Included below are select quotes from interviews with the following Browns position coaches during today’s media availability:
- Wide receivers coach Adam Henry
- Pass game coordinator/secondary coach Joe Whitt
Wide receivers coach Adam Henry:
On WR Jaelen Strong having another strong practice today:
“Yeah, the goal is to stack a couple – day after day together and we’ll see how it works. We are just doing a bunch of combinations right now and trying to create some depth there running with the ones. That is what we are doing. Day by day, moving guys around.”
On the priority of the WRs and QB Baker Mayfield getting in sync:
“It is critical. It is all about timing, precision, accuracy and the spacing and distribution. It is very critical. The great thing about Baker is he is a great worker and a great communicator. He comes into the room and gets the guys on the same page. ‘This is what I am thinking’ before practice. It is a systematic way of thinking. He has great leadership skills. He talks to the receivers the way they need to each one individually. I feel comfortable with where we are going.”
On WR Antonio Callaway and Callaway not receiving as many reps with the first team offense:
“That is just creating depth. You want to see guys with the depth of the receiver group moving along. There are going to be times where now he is just getting a lot of the two reps, but it is a lot of reps. Just getting the reps and the communication of it. I am not worried about Callaway. He will be fine.”
On if Mayfield speaks in the WRs room often:
“Yes, most definitely. That is the name of the game is communication rules the nation. Whenever there is something going on or something he is thinking every day so when he gets in in the morning and he has a systematic way of practice, when we get into certain situations or scenarios, this is how he is thinking. It is to game plan for the day. Just as we would do throughout the course of a week, this is what we do every day.”
On if it is normal for a QB to speak in the WRs room often:
“It is normal, but he does a great job of writing on the board some things to make sure he gets it out or he will communicate it to me. He does a good job with it.”
On WRs Odell Beckham Jr.’s and Jarvis Landry’s progress during training camp:
“It is going along fine. That is the thing where each and every day it is getting better and better. You saw today they strung together a good day. There are going to be ebbs and flows, and you stay with it.”
Pass game coordinator/secondary coach Joe Whitt:
On if he enjoys when the Browns play three Ss in a formation:
“I would not necessarily say that I enjoy it. It is just what the situation calls for. The only thing I care about is playing great defense. I do not care if we have zero safeties out there and 11 defensive linemen. It does not really matter.”
On how has the Browns Ss have progressed since the start of training camp:
“It has been up and down. I think the first four guys are doing well. The younger guys have to be more consistent with their calls, understanding the formations and what the offense is trying to do to us. The top four guys, I believe they are making the calls, they are getting people in the right position and they are making plays. (S Jermaine) Whitehead made a number of plays today that were really outstanding, especially when we had a horrible day today. The times that we did do something positive, he was the guy that made it. When we are in dire situations, we have to turn it around, and he did that today.”
On if S Damarious Randall has potential to be a Pro Bowl player:
“I am not worried about the Pro Bowl. I am worried about today and the next day. If we worry about Pro Bowls and individual stats we will not go anywhere as a team. We are out trying to win a Super Bowl. We will look at all that at the end of February, and if we do what we are supposed to do, we will all have the accolades. If we do not, then we will not. I do not even talk to him about that.”
On Randall’s best attributes:
“He has range. He has great ball skills. He is extremely smart. He is a guy that can keep a top on the defense. He can get down and he can play man coverage in the slot. He can go outside and play outside if he is needed to. He can blitz with tempo. The kid is very gifted. He is talented. Hopefully, he has the year that you are alluding to, but I do not want to talk about those type of years. I want to talk about playing good football as a team and then that takes care of everything else.”
On his message about team over individual accolades matching Head Coach Freddie Kitchens’ message and how that benefits the Browns:
“It makes it right. The message comes from the head coach. It comes from above. I believe in the message. That is one reason I came here. I believe in Freddie and what we are trying to do. We are trying to win a championship. That is what is has to be. If you have a leader, you follow the leader. If you have anybody that is not doing that, you are not going to win.”
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