WR Odell Beckham Jr., DE Myles Garrett and CB Denzel Ward (7.25.19)
Included below are select quotes from interviews with the following Browns players during today’s media availability:
- WR Odell Beckham Jr.
- DE Myles Garrett
- CB Denzel Ward
WR Odell Beckham Jr.:
On getting involved in the offense right away in practice:
“It is nice to be out here and be able to do what you love. I have been playing the game since I was four or five years old so just to be able to be back in football, shift all of your focus on football and cut everything else out, I’m excited to be here.”
On feeling the fan excitement and at practice:
“You can feel it. You don’t even have to hear. I’m a real empath so I can feel the hunger and the want to win from these fans and that’s something we want to showcase and give to them.”
On making difficult catches look so easy:
“I’m blessed. God gifted me with some gifts. If it is put in the right spot, to me nothing feels like a hard catch. The harder catches are the easiest ones to be honest with you. A lot of receivers would say the same. The easy catches, you really have to focus on. I’m just happy to be out there and playing football. This the game that I love.”
On if he ever surprises himself when making a difficult or juggling catch:
“No, I expect myself to make all of those catches. I actually get upset that I juggled it and have to do all that and not catch it the first time. Bobbling it, not every time are you going to come down with it. Just make the catch the first time.”
On how much of the team he knows and getting to know new teammates:
“I couldn’t give you a number. Whenever I sit down to eat in the café, I sit with a different group of people. I sit there, talk and communicate and get to know these guys. These are the guys you go to war with. No disrespect to the coaches or anybody else in the organization, but when the ball is snapped and the whistle blows, it is just us out there so you have to get to know who you are battling with. We are all fighting for the same goal so I am excited to be able to learn new faces. This game has taught me you make lifelong friends, whether you’re on the same team or you go to a different team. These are the guys you battle with, and you will forever remember and cherish it.”
DE Myles Garrett:
On switching sides on the defensive line with DE Olivier Vernon and if that is new to him:
“I have done it before so it is not out of the ordinary for me. It is just about getting comfortable with him and having chemistry, whether we want to sides at time or switch according to the call. If he’s hot, he will stay on that side or if I’m hot. We will go wherever is suiting us at that moment.”
On how dangerous the duo with Vernon can be this season:
“Pretty dangerous. We could get a couple sacks between us. Maybe three or four a night.”
On his tweet to Titans LT Taylor Lewan about hoping he plays against the team in Week 1:
“I am going to give 110 percent against whoever is up there, whether it is Taylor, I am on the other side or if it is the backup. That guy still wants to make a name for himself, and I want to make a name for myself in the league, as well. I would love to see [Lewan] play. I love going against guys, characters like him who are competitive and don’t take any mess. I am the same way. Just being able to stamp yourself, you have to go against guys and dominate.”
On the lack of media attention to the Browns defense compared to the Browns offense:
“It does not bother me at all. I don’t mind not getting any attention. I don’t mind it on the field either. If you don’t want to block me, I will be willing to take the sack, too (laughter). I am not a spotlight kind of guy. They can have all of that. I’m just going to make plays and be there for my defense like I am supposed to be.”
On if he feels he has made a name for himself in the NFL or if he has a lot more to show:
“I have a lot more. Switching sides, dropping back, getting to the passer. I just think there is more to what I can do.
On how the NFL will view him when he has shown everything he is capable of:
“As the best defensive player in the league – that is the goal. That is the only way to stamp your name in the history books. If you are the best defensive player, you have to win Defensive Player of the Year. That is always the goal. If I don’t win that, it is about being a team player and taking my team to the Super Bowl.”
On the defense potentially being a difference maker for the Browns:
“Defense wins championships. We have seen that many times throughout the years and it is never going to change. If they can’t score the ball and we can, then we are going to win every time. We have the best of both worlds.”
CB Denzel Ward:
On how the Browns defense did today:
“We did alright. It is the first day back. I know for myself I came out a little rusty, a little slow just trying to get my footing back and everything. I think it was a straight first day, though.”
On working against WR Odell Beckham Jr.:
“We are going to get each other better. We are just out there competing and getting each other better trying to help this team win. It is going to be a good matchup in practice.”
On if the atmosphere feels different at training camp than last year:
“It is everybody. It is not just one specific player. It is everybody. We are just trying to lock in and just get better. This was our first day out. Everybody was out there running around and having fun. You are going to make mistakes and stuff, but we are just trying to get better every day.”
On if the Browns defense is under the radar:
“I do not know. I am not really worried about that. I am just coming out here just trying to practice, get better at what I have to get better at and get the ball back from the offense.”
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