C JC Tretter (11.22.21)
On if he can sense QB Baker Mayfield’s frustration with not being fully healthy:
“I think we have all played banged up at some point in our career, and it is not easy. It is not easy physically to start, and then mentally, it drains you because there are things you have always been able to do and then you can’t do those things in the same way. That is frustrating. I think that is something that people overlook is kind of that mental grind of playing hurt for a lot of time in the middle of the season. It is just kind of exhausting. It is definitely tough, but I think Baker is fighting hard for us right now. We really appreciate that from him. No, it is never easy.”
On if the Browns are in a pretty good spot all things considered, given all of the team’s goals are currently still within reach:
“Yeah, we are a 6-5 football team. We have a really big game against the Ravens this week, then the bye week and then we have a stretch of really good teams we play to end the season. All of the things we wanted to accomplish at the beginning of the year before the season started are still attainable and they are still out in front of us. The season has not gone exactly how we wanted it to. There are things we wish we would have done differently or played better at times, but again, everything we wanted to accomplish Week 1 of the season going forward is still out there.”
On if it is surprising when Mayfield does not come out of the game after being injured and getting banged up more during a game:
“No, Baker is a tough player, and he wants to fight with us. We know he has our back. We have his back. He is a tough guy so no, it does not. We know what he is dealing with and we know it is not easy for him to play, but we know he is up to the task and he is going to play with us. We want him out there with us.”
On the Browns’ limited points scored in five of the past six games:
“Specifically yesterday, penalties killed us. We had a bunch of drives stall because of penalties so that is stuff we should easily be able to clean up. Those are just mental mistakes. Some are combative, which those you are going to get over the course of the game, but some of them are just mental lapses and pre-snap penalties. That will stall a drive. All of a sudden, you go from being in the right down and distance or ahead of the sticks to playing from behind the sticks and having to make a big play to keep the drive going. Penalties have been a big part of it, and we can be cleaner as an offense. We are not playing our best football right now as an offense, but it does not mean we can. We know what we need to do. We did not put up the amount of points we wanted to yesterday, but we still get the win. That is really in the end all that matters. In the grand scheme of things, if you can get enough wins to get to the playoffs, that is all that matters. There are things we are going to clean up and things we can get better at, but like I said earlier, everything is still in front of us that we want to accomplish.”
On Mayfield walking off of the field quickly after Sunday’s game without shaking hands with opponents or ‘celebrating with teammates’:
“I would not know that happened at the time. We kind of have our tradition after a win and what we do as an offensive line, the quarterbacks and running backs. Baker was there for that. We celebrated in the locker room, and Baker was there for that. I do not think any of us really… Immediately after the game on the field is not really a celebration in my mind. That is more going to talk with the guys you have relationships with on the other team, checking on them and seeing how they are doing. Once you get back to the locker room, that is really the time to celebrate, be with your teammates and enjoy those winning moments. I take nothing from Baker heading into the locker room. Again, we are all human beings, and we get frustrated. That is not really a worry of mine. He was there with us in the locker room when we usually celebrate so I would not even notice that happened.”
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