HC Kevin Stefanski (9.27.20)
Head Coach Kevin Stefanski:
Opening statement:
“Start with injuries, (CB) Denzel (Ward) came out of there in the third quarter. We will see how he is. I do not think he will be any worse for the wear, but he felt it a little bit so we will be smart about that. (WR) JoJo Natson is going to get his knee looked at here this evening. (LB) Tae Davis – elbow. We will have more updates as we get the imaging on those guys.
“That is a good team win. Anytime you are plus-five [in the turnover margin], that is darn good. Defense, I thought was outstanding. I challenged them to get that rock, and they did. We scored on every single one of those takeaways, except for that one right there at the half. It was a game where we went down in the game a couple times and the guys came back. That is a big piece of this is being resilient. Kicking game, (K) Cody (Parkey) was two-for-two on field goal, four-for-four on extra point and knocked every single one out of the end zone so I thought he did a nice job. A good team win.”
On how the Browns responded in the fourth quarter after falling behind:
“Yeah, that is a (Washington Head Coach) Ron Rivera coached team. That is a tough team. You saw what they did in the first couple games where they came back. We knew it was a 60-minute fight. We talked to the guys about that all week and even today so we were totally ready for that.”
On getting contributions from a number of Browns players on defense today:
“It is important. This is a long season. It was great to see some guys that came back off of injury. Hopefully, we will get a few more here as we get going. Whether it is offense or defense, we want to use all the players, especially the guys that provide versatility.”
On DE Myles Garrett’s strip-sack and recovering the fumble, Garrett’s second strip-sack during a key moment in as many weeks:
“That is really what we expect from Myles. I know he expects it of himself. We need him to play great, and when it turns into a pass-rush game, he is built for that. I thought he did a great job. You get and honesty day’s work out of Myles Garrett. Really proud of him.”
On the stretch in the third quarter where Washington took the lead and the Browns responding:
“Offensively, we did not do anything moving the ball – three-and-out there. That is not playing complementary football so that was unfair to the team how we performed coming at halftime. Listen, this is the National Football League, and you are going to get some really good attacks. That is a talented group over there. We knew they were going to be able to make a few plays. We just want to limit them. Again, just the ball searching and the guys being around the ball was outstanding.”
On the importance of the Browns being above .500 for the first time since 2014:
“We are just trying to go 1-0 every week.”
On the Browns offense scoring points after takeaways and QB Baker Mayfield ending his interception streak:
“Offensively, anytime you get a takeaway from your defense, you are set up and you have to go get seven. That is such a big part of this game, not settling for a field goal, not punting or whatever it may be. Baker did a nice job. I thought he trusted his eyes for the most part and the ball went where the ball was supposed to go. There were a couple sacks I think we can learn from, but he is doing a nice job of operating.”
On if he is aware of the significance of today’s game being the first in NFL history with a female coach on both sidelines and a female official:
“I am very aware of it, and I am very proud of it. Proud of (Chief of Staff) Callie (Brownson). She is a tremendous team player. The stuff she does behind the scenes is incredible. Just the significance of having the women in those positions today is a very big deal, and we want to shine a light on it.”
On Mayfield’s TD to TE Harrison Bryant, it appearing to be planned for RB Kareem Hunt and what the play shows about finding the TD:
“What it tells me is that we did not design a very good play. We are trying to get guys open. Sometimes you do not, and it feels really good to have a QB that can make something when the play call was pretty bad.”
On the significance of WR Odell Beckham Jr.’s third-down catch at the end of the third quarter on third-and-long:
“That was huge. We were stubbing our toe on offense, and we were not doing a very good job for the team. We were putting the defense in some tough spots. Odell continues to just, the dude plays hard and he practices hard. When he gets an opportunity, he makes a play for us. He did a great job, and the quarterback did a nice job there and Kareem had a nice blitz pickup, if I am not mistaken.”
On if RB Nick Chubb continues to amaze the team after a 108-yard, two-TD hard running performance:
“I am not surprised, if that is possible, at some of the things he does because I know what he is capable of. I think Nick and Kareem would say the same thing, credit to that offensive line, credit to the tight ends, (FB) Andy Janovich and the receivers busting their rear ends in the run game. Really, I also want to give credit to (offensive line) Coach (Bill) Callahan, who does a great job setting these run gameplans up.”
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