LB Christian Kirksey:
On the Browns defense's performance:
"I think things are going pretty well right now. Guys are getting more and more confident and more and more comfortable. They are making plays, more and more plays here and there, so I think collectively, we are coming together and just starting to shape it to where we want to go."
On New Orleans recording a few big runs against the first team defense on Thursday:
"You are going to get a couple big plays here and there. That is the name of the game. That is football. Honestly, it is just tackling for us. Some of those plays where the running back gained 10-12 yards after contact, that is just us not being sound in our technique as far as tackling. We will clean that up."
On how defensive coordinator Gregg Williams' reacted to New Orleans' long runs:
"Gregg is coaching us. When we are on the field, he lets us go out there and play. We will correct the correctables once we look at film. He just told us we need to tackle better so I think he took that pretty well."
On LB Joe Schobert in his second training camp:
"Joe is smart. He can play all three linebacker positions. He is a guy that is always around the ball, always trying to make plays on the ball. I am excited to see him grow in this defense. As you can see, he went out there, he got a sack and he was in on a lot of tackles. He is just a guy that flies around and knows what he is doing and could easily play any one of those positions. Whenever his name is called, he will be ready."
On if he liked how the first-team defense played on the goal line against New Orleans:
"Yeah, I think guys were sacrificing their bodies, just going in there trying to make a play, trying to clog the hole. We were out there trying to fight, trying to not allow our opponents to score a touchdown and guys just gave it their all. We have some stuff we need to clean up technique-wise and stuff, but guys continue to strive to get better."
On the adjustment transitioning from a 3-4 to a 4-3 defense:
"Just growing up playing football, you learn about the 3-4 and the 4-3 so I wouldn't say it is a difficult adjustment or too hard for guys to make that switch. I think guys are really picking it up well and adjusting to it well. All it is is just learning a new defense. We have seen a lot of different playbooks, we have had different coaches so our minds are fixed basically to learn the playbook like that [*snaps finger], so I think guys are handling it pretty well."
K Cody Parkey:
On his performance during training camp:
"I'm kicking well right now, going out there and doing my best. I put in a lot of work in this offseason to be where I am at right now. I definitely feel a whole lot better at this time this year than I did last year. That is for sure."
On how he felt when the Browns drafted K Zane Gonzalez:
"I was kind of taken aback, but I was reassured that it was going to be an open competition. For me, it just kind of makes me want to work even harder just to prove people wrong about me. I have had success in this league. I have had my ups and downs like anyone else, but just to go out there and show the team that I can do it. I hope that I am going out there and showing the coaches what I am capable of doing. Good competition – Zane is an awesome guy – but at the end of the day, this is my job. I want to win. I'm just going to go out every day and try to compete."
On if competing with Gonzalez has made him better:
"Absolutely, competition breeds success. At the end of the day, I am competing against myself. I am not trying to beat Zane that day. I am trying to beat myself. As good as it is having another guy in there – we can talk kicking and stuff like that, and (special teams coordinator) Coach (Chris) Tabor is awesome with that, too. It is definitely refreshing having another guy in there that is very good. We are getting each other better, and I think that is what they wanted."
On overcoming his first game with the Browns at Miami and if he felt like he proved himself:
"They gave me another game after the first game, which was honestly awesome. They believed in me. I didn't have a good first game. There is no way to sugarcoat that, but I think the definition of a good kicker is how you respond because you are going to miss a kick here and there. It is how you respond so I think I responded in the next game going two-for-two and just showing them that I can do this. Especially for me, that was my first couple games coming off my injury the year before. I feel stronger than ever, better than ever and I am just ready to get things rolling."
K Zane Gonzalez:
On the kicking competition:
"It is going well so far. Not really any issues. I'm just working each day to get better."
On what the kickers do in addition to what the media sees at practice:
"Whether it be working on timing, get-offs on film, little things like the way you are hitting the ball, approach the ball, your follow through, whether it is the right or left hash – a lot of different things when we are watching film, as well as the weight room. Just getting in there and getting better. Putting the time and effort in and being a pro."
On where he is in the kicking competition:
"I think it is pretty close competition right now. They usually do a pretty good job of keeping it under wraps for the most part just between the coaching staff. I believe that helps out a lot. Me and (K) Cody (Parkey) just go out there every day and just try to do our best each and every day."
On if they get a score of how they did each day:
"(Laughter) Well, we know our charts. We know how we do each and every day. We have both been kicking phenomenally. It is really hard to say if anybody has the edge right now. The last few days, everybody has pretty much been hitting the balls the same. When you have two kickers going 100 percent, it is hard to complain about that."
On if the windy practice in July when K Cody Parkey and he missed kicks gave him an idea about kicking in Cleveland:
"Yeah, looking back on those kicks, I feel like we both could have done better, but it did give me some work in the wind and getting used to the situations here in Cleveland. At the end of the day, it was just another day to get out here and get better. Practice is practice for a reason. You go out there and get reps with the team so you can get better on gameday."
OL Shon Coleman:
On his performance during training camp:
"I am doing well so far. I just have to buckle down on a couple things technique-wise and just be more consistent."
On how practicing at LT affects him as he competes to start at RT:
"By now, I am pretty comfortable at both sides so whether it is playing left tackle or right tackle, you just have to go out there and work your technique and everything. It is good work for me to be able to go on both sides and be able to keep refreshing everything as far as assignments and things like that."
On if his power in the running game is one of his best attributes:
"Definitely. That is what I take pride in is in the run-game knocking people off the ball, being as physical as I can. That is the way I am trying to help the team."
On if using his strength in the running game has always been an element to his game:
"In the SEC, all we did was run the football so you kind of derive from that. That is the big thing that (Head) Coach (Hue) Jackson is trying to put in the game is running the ball, and I feel like I can go out there and help him do that."
On blocking for RB Isaiah Crowell:
"He is a hard runner. He is a very physical runner. He can hit the hole, and that just makes our job more important to make a hole for him. We know he will get in there."
On his reaction to being listed as the starting RT on the first unofficial depth chart:
"I just have to keep going out there and doing my thing, working on the technique, getting better, being more consistent and just trying to make the team better."
On if he views the RT competition as 'his job to lose':
"I don't look at it like that at all. Like I said, I just go out there, do my thing and just try to get the team better. I leave that up to the coaches and everything, how they want to do the depth charts. I am just focused on what I can do to get the team better."
