Select Browns Players (12.17.23)
S D’Anthony Bell
Did you see the ball land in Chicago Bears WR Darnell Mooney hands at the end of the game?
“Yes, I did. I was like I have to dive on him. I cannot let that happen and it ended up popping into my hands.”
How slow were things moving on that play (the last play of the game)
“Very slow, it is like you are waiting forever for the ball to go up. I trust the guys and the preparation that we go through as a team. I trust everyone like they trusted me to be out there today. It was a blessing to come out with a win.”
You have been waiting so long to have a moment like that, how does it feel?
“It means the world, I just want to thank God, thank my family that supports me, thank these guys in the room for allowing me to come in and fill a great safety spot behind S Grant Delpit. A pro bowl guy, just filling in and keeping the same course that we have been going on as a defense this whole year.”
P Corey Bojorquez (with K Dustin Hopkins)
What is it about this locker room that has not allowed some injuries that would normally derail a season not to derail this season?
Hopkins: “I think guys have stepped into those roles and done their job and I think there’s tons of respect for guys in the locker room and somebody steps in that’s like, hey you just did your role and people respect that so I think that’s part of it and I think it’s also a testament to AB (Andrew Berry) and Kevin (Stefanski) for putting people in the right places and having a deep roster to where we can pull out wins.”
What was going through your head on the hail mary?
Bojorquez: “Can’t wait to go home with a win.”
Hopkins: “Oh man, yeah, no, not going to lie when I saw it go into, I don’t know who the player was but one of their guys hands, kind of lost my breath for a second ya know but yeah I’m just thankful.”
Bojorquez: “I’ve been on the other side of that and that was in Buffalo when we played Arizona and DeAndre Hopkins caught that one at the end and it sucks battling it out and losing like that so it’s a good sigh of relief after.”
How are you feeling about it getting colder, the weather out here?
Hopkins: “I just don’t put that much stock into it and it’s not to say that it doesn’t make it difficult because it does. We talk about it at times but I just think if you overthink it, I don’t know my opinion everytime we go out for a Sunday I try not to look at the leadup, what it’s gonna be, how bad or how good It’s just like well it’ll be what it’ll be on Sunday and I’ll have to in real time see what it’s doing to my ball flight in warmup and will adjust accordingly. So not ideal but I guess for me I don’t want to put too much stock into make that a bigger thing than it has to be and it’s nice. I’ve mentioned this in earlier interviews but Corey and Charley (Hughlett) have done so good all year like I’m getting such good looks on the ball. Is this our third or fourth rain game? So anyway rain, wind in between I’m getting such good looks at the ball which makes a huge difference for me so kudos to these guys. Shoot and my line, line blocking all you guys. I can’t forget the big fellas.”
WR Amari Cooper
Coach Stefanski said he blacked out on the hail mary, did you get a good look at it?
“Yeah, that was – man, because the crowd, you know generally when the ball touches someone’s hands and your in the home crowd, they’re cheering, but when the ball touched whoever’s hands, it was so cluttered up that you couldn’t really see, and the crowd didn’t really respond. It’s like as if they were you know, it’s like as if the play didn’t go our way. But one of those guys on the other team said that he caught the ball and then he didn’t catch the ball so, man, that would have been crazy.”
What is it about this group, you guys have always talked about next man up, obviously it’s always believing you have a chance to win, what separates this group from those being just talk or ideas to those being reality?
“You know every team has the man power, as far as numbers, but injuries are going to occur. Guys are going to get hurt through the season unfortunately. The next guy has to step up, we believe in the next guy who steps up and they just have to come in and make the plays that they’re supposed to make.”
Is it almost perfect that the ball ends up in D’Anthony Bell’s hands? Just kind of that next man up thing, he was an undrafted guy, he’s been waiting for his opportunity, the game ends with the ball in his hands?
“Yeah, that’s the perfect scenario. Guys making plays when we need them to make plays. Doesn’t matter who it is, just be responsible, do your job, come in work your tail off each and every week and you know good things will follow, I believe that.”
Joe was 15 yards away from his career high for a single game. How crazy is that to put into context?
“It’s pretty incredible. You know, you never know. Any given Sunday, that’s why they say that, any given Sunday you never know how the cookie will crumble on any given Sunday. Now that I’m thinking back on it, we did have a lot of down the field throws, that worked for us, but yeah, I’m proud of Joe (Flacco).”
WR Marquise Goodwin
To be a part of a game like this, what does this mean to you, and to make a big play like you did when you did it?
“It’s really less about me, it’s more about my team. They supported me so much throughout my journey this year, dealing with the highs and the lows, I’m just glad that I was available today to be out there making one play for the team and hopefully just capitalize on that and build off it moving forward.”
What is it about this team that allows you guys to persevere, overcome and still make the big plays when it counts?
“I think we’re just football players. A lot of us have been playing football since we were little kids, I know I have since I was nine, so when you are a football player you have to be resilient. You can’t get too high on the highs and too low on the lows. You just kinda have to focus on each play at a time and I think we do a great job here of doing that.”
TE David Njoku
Did you know how close you were to the back of the end zone on your touchdown catch?
“I had that in mind. I was hoping that they’d hurry up and kick the extra point so they couldn’t go back.”
Where does your touchdown catch rank in your all-time catches?
“It’s not personal, this game is a team sport. Of course, there are personal accolades, but this is about the team. I’m second.”
Is there anyone that you won’t try to jump over?
“If I think they are going low, I’m going high. Do you get what I’m saying?”
What was the conversation like after the leap?
“I started laughing because I don’t know if you guys caught it, but he also jumped too. So I thought that was kind of funny.”
How do you respond from a two-touchdown game last week and have 10 catches for 104 yards and a score today?
“Like I said, it’s not me. It’s a team effort. Everybody from the kicker to the snapper to the offense, defense, special teams, it’s everybody. It’s not me. The last thing I want you guys to think is that it was my doing, because it is not. It’s God first and then it’s the team. It was a team effort that we were able to win and we’re on to next week.”
What were your thoughts when the Hail Mary pass went into the hands of Bears WR Darnell Mooney in the end zone?
“I damn near sh*t myself. Luckily our defense made an exceptional play, sealed the game, and that was it.”
G Wyatt Teller
What can you say about QB Joe Flacco in the fourth quarter?
“We saw that first hand last year when he came back and beat our butt (laugh). He’s a great quarterback. I’ve said this to the media before, he’s talking to us on the sideline, “Alright this is what we got to do. This is what’s going to happen.” If you are near him, obviously. If you are on the other side, you’re not going to hear him, he’s not screaming at you. To be able to lead us to do that, shows you what kind of leader he is too.”
What is it about this team to overcome adversity with injuries?
“It’s crazy. It’s definitely a weird adversity. Honestly, I wish there were no injuries in football, but that’s just not the way it works. We all have to play through it. We all have to fight through it. Some injuries are less than others. When Joe Thomas did his unbelievable 10 seasons without missing a snap, he was hurt, he was just never injured. He was never out of the game. So to be able to fight through the injuries that we all have, the injuries we do have are pretty severe injuries. I’m not here to tell you it’s the playing field. I’m not here to tell you it’s the way we train. We train hard. We have grass. It’s just a crazy thing that happens. We are really strong individuals. We are trying to stop each from doing what we want to do, so there’s going to be a lot of injuries. To be able to play through it, fight through. That mentality of “next man up”, doesn’t matter who’s out there, we are all together.”
What has QB Joe Flacco meant to this team?
“He’s a leader. He’s a great leader. Tough guy. There was one play earlier in the game, I got my hands swiped, I’m trying to run inside and he gets tackled. I think it was on the first pick, and I feel like crap, because I’m like, “Aw, I led to the pick, it’s not Joe’s fault.” I keep going over to Joe and say, “It’s not your fault, I should have got the guy out of your face” and he’s like, “Dude, calm down. Calm down. We all are going to be OK.” It’s reminds me when everybody was like “You guys suck” (to the Packers last year) and Aaron Rodgers said, “Relax, we are going to be OK”, and (the Packers) went on to win 10 games that year. So, it just shows you that calmer heads will prevail. We all are emotional. It’s a very emotional game. His leadership, young guys aren’t going to be able to understand what he’s been through. I think he won the Super Bowl when I was in high school. That experience, that level of understanding of the game, mental acuity, it’s special and I know that’s been brought to the team.”
DE Alex Wright
What was going on in your mind during the last play of the game?
“I was just trying to get him (QB Justin Fields) down as soon as possible. I don’t want to put it on the backend. The quicker we get him down, the better. I had faith in the backend that they were going to get it down.”
How did the team come together?
“Watch the film. It’s not about me, it’s about the players. We are just picking each other up.”
How much coming back from your injury served as motivation?
“Just because we’re down, we aren’t going to change. We still have work to do, we still have work to put in. Play with our hearts on our sleeve.”
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