QB Baker Mayfield (10.4.20)
QB Baker Mayfield:
On WR Odell Beckham Jr.’s playmaking ability in today’s game, including his rushing TD to help seal the win:
“Extremely important play at the end. We needed a score. We let our foot off the gas a little bit. We needed to put that game away. It is a learning experience for us. Odell was making plays all day. That is what he is capable of doing, and the play where (WR) Jarvis (Landry) chucked it to him on the reverse pass was pretty special. We have a lot of talent. We just have to go out and execute.”
On his message to the team late in the game when the Cowboys cut the game to one score and Beckham’s late TD run:
“For your first question, you just to tell guys we have got to go out and execute. We let them back in the game. It’s a great team. They are resilient. We have seen them come back against Atlanta earlier in the season so it should not have been a surprise to us. We have to be able to put that away. On the reverse that scored, I heard the crowd noise. I had my back to it so I turned around and saw that there was somebody right there so I didn’t exactly see it live, but I knew he had to have made a great play to make him miss.”
On the Browns rushing for more than 300 yards despite losing RB Nick Chubb early in the game:
“It is tough losing a guy like that. We love Nick. Everybody here loves Nick and the work he puts in, but this is a hard-working team. We had guys who were resilient today. So proud of those guys who stepped up, but it speaks volumes on our offensive line, as well. Just that whole group as a unit, they take so much pride in running the ball and establishing that run game like we keep talking about. Our guys ran extremely hard. A couple of times where (RB) Dontrell (Hilliard) and (RB) D’Ernest (Johnson) aren’t the biggest guys, but they are running extremely hard so I am proud of all three of those guys.”
On DE Myles Garrett’s performance in his homecoming game, including his third strip-sack in as many games:
“Once again, Myles makes a big time play in a big moment. I told him if he keeps getting one strip-sack a game, I am not going to be mad at him. We kind of had their defense on the field a lot in the first half, but the way they played in the second half, they had a lot of plays and they tired us down a little bit. We made the plays when we needed to, and that is the most important part. Myles once again changed the game for us.”
On his trust in the Browns OL and the unit improving each week:
“They are getting better. We have great players up front. They work extremely hard. We have a great offensive line coach in Coach (Bill) Callahan. We are just all on the same page right now. I am trusting those guys, and I am trusting the guys on the outside to be in the right spots at the right time. It is a complete unit, and that goes for everybody protection wise. We are doing a good job right now and need to keep getting better.”
On his feel for the offense and game Head Coach Kevin Stefanski wants to call at this point of the season:
“We can score points when we need to. Like we keep saying, establishing that run game, creating one on ones in the outside and the play-action game and then when we need to throw it, we just have to be efficient. On some of those third downs, I thought we could have been a little bit better and I could have been a little bit better distributing the ball and finding completions. We are learning that we are efficient when we need to be. We just have to be more consistent. I think that is the biggest takeaway from today. We scored a lot of points, but we left a lot out there, and I truly believe that.”
On the Browns starting the season 3-1 for the first time since 2001 and the resiliency the team showed playing through injuries and fending off the Cowboys’ comeback:
“I am proud of these guys for this first quarter of the season being 3-1. That speaks volumes to us after bouncing back after Week 1. Proud of (WR) Donovan (Peoples-Jones) stepping up. He was not going to get that many snaps today, and then (WR KhaDarel) Hodge goes down and he is ready to step up. A resilient team, as well as the guys who stepped up for Nick like we hit on earlier. We have to hit the reset button. We are onto the second quarter of the year, we have the Colts coming up and we have to continue to improve.”
On getting a significant number of players involved on offense:
“We have said that it is pick your poison on what you want to defend so getting everybody involved, they can’t key in on one certain guy. That is big time for us.”
On if today’s win feels similar to the Week 4 win at Baltimore last season and how the Browns can keep the momentum going:
“This does not feel like last year one bit. We are going to continue to improve, and we are onto the second quarter of the year.”
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