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Opening statement:**
"We have had some productive meetings today with our personnel staff as we make our final evaluations to establish our roster for the 2016 season. As I said last night, there is definitely a level of excitement, and we are close to arriving at a point that we spent eight months preparing for. Although we would have been happier with different results in our preseason games, I do feel good about the way our team is working and the attitude and mentality of our players and our coaching staff. The players have worked extremely hard, along with our coaches, and really bought into what we are trying to teach. We do understand and we still have to do some things better, but we also recognize the challenge ahead. We know it is going to become a little bit more difficult. I'm going to continue to ask our guys to give more, along with our coaching staff, because we are getting ready to start on a huge journey in front of us.
"The personnel department and the coaching staff will continue the process of finalizing our roster over the next couple of days. These are extremely difficult days, as you very well know, because we have to tell a lot of young men that they have done everything that you have asked of them the last eight months that they don't have a chance to be part of the team right now. We hope that we have helped them become better players and better men along through the process, but it is tough because we all know that a lot of their dreams are tied to this opportunity.
"Right now, our coaching staff, it is really about getting our prep right, game planning, getting ready for the Eagles. We have been looking forward to this for a lot of months. Throughout the preseason, our focus has been on those games and evaluating our football team, but right now, it has got to shift to the Eagles.
"From an injury standpoint, aside from unfortunate injury to (RB) Rajion Neal last night, we seem to be getting pretty healthy."
On if the Browns have made any roster moves today:
"Yes, we have. They will all come out pretty soon. I don't want to [mention those] because we haven't really gotten to everybody just yet, but I'm sure that list will get out to you guys pretty soon."
On what the Browns are looking for DB Joe Haden, OL Joe Thomas and the rest of the team's leaders to do, given his conversation with those players last night:
"To be at their best because those guys are the guys that we are going to win with. They are the leaders of this football team, and they have to take the responsibility that comes with that by helping this team prepare and be ready and understand the challenge that is ahead of us."
On where the Browns have improved the most since start of training camp:
"I think that what is happening, I don't know that there is any one segment that has improved the most. I think the biggest thing we have done is we are starting to settle on our football team. Can I tell you one thing that has improved more than the other? That would be probably difficult for me to do right now. Right now, we are still working our tails off to make sure we shore up anything and everything that we have had some issues with. At the same time, I feel very comfortable with where we are with the people that we have that we have an opportunity to move forward."
On what WR Corey Coleman can do to make up missed time during the preseason and be ready for Week 1, specifically in reference to him lining up incorrectly on one play yesterday:
"It is practice. It is being at practice every day. It is through the walkthroughs and then out to practice and then through practice and studying away. Corey will be fine. Those things happen. He is not the first young player to line up incorrectly one time. That will happen. Sometimes wires get crossed. We hate that it happens, but at the same time, we all know that it does. I am not going to judge him on that one play, Corey is going to be a tremendous football player for us, and he will do some great things here."
On Coleman's understanding of the playbook thus far and if his 'head is spinning':
"No, I don't think his head is spinning. What it is, I think sometimes when you get down in the scoring zone or you get down in different situations, all of the sudden the play is called and you don't hear it all. You turn away a little too soon or you thought it was this when it was really that. Those things happen. I don't think Corey is spinning. I don't think there is any issue with Corey whatsoever. It is unfortunate that it happened at that time and we are having to talk about it today, but he has been outstanding as far as getting lined up and knowing exactly what to do."
On if he has potentially been more patient with younger players compared to when he was coaching in Oakland, given how much the team has to learn:
"Absolutely. I think you have to be. We have a very young football team, and I have to give them – there is always a little bit of rope here to get them where they need to be. They are going to make mistakes. Our football team is going to make mistakes. We just can't make the same mistakes over and over. Hopefully, the ones that we don't want to make are the ones that hurt us as a football team. We don't want to turn the ball over. We don't want to get stupid penalties, as we all know. We want to make sure that from those things that we are handling things from an intelligent standpoint and are making sure that we are doing everything we can to protect the ball."
On DL Danny Shelton's preseason, his role with the defense and his progress toward becoming a three-down player:
"Danny has grown a lot. I think he has really taken to our coaching staff. There are some technical things that we have asked him to do differently. He is working at it each and every opportunity that he has had to be out on the field. He sees the opportunity for that to help his game. There is no question that we have left him out there for three downs. We think he can play three downs, and I think he is working extremely hard. Obviously, this is going to start the season and he is going to kind of get an opportunity to write the script for what it is going to be like for the 2016 season for him."
On if the Browns saw anything encouraging from Ps Michael Palardy and Kasey Redfern last night:
"Yeah, I saw a 75-yard boom (laughter), but ultimately, I saw those two that got shanked out of bounds. We have to get better. There is no question about that. We are still working at that and understand that it is an area that we need to address and make sure that we have that secure and ready by the time we get ready to get to Philadelphia."
On the Browns signing DL Stephen Paea and if he can fit a 3-4 defensive scheme:
"He can play in a 3-4, and he has played in some 3-4 in Washington. He played in some 4-3 before. I think he is versatile that way. I think he can play in any system that we play in."
On if the Browns will consider playing a 4-3 defense or if the team will strictly play in a 3-4:
"We will do whatever we think it takes to win football games. You said it best as far as strategy as we move forward. We have to do now, as I stated last night, the most important thing now is about game planning to give our players the best chance to have success in games and have opportunities to win games."
On if all of the Browns drafted rookie WRs can make the 53-man roster:
"We are definitely going to do everything we can to keep those guys here. We drafted them. We think they have bright futures. Obviously, we haven't made as many plays yet from that group as we would like, but we think that all those guys have an opportunity. We are working through all of that now, trying to make sure of how that's all going to pan out, but I think there is an opportunity for those young men to be here."
On the younger Browns WRs outside of the rookie class fighting for a spot on the roster:
"I have really appreciated all of those guys because they have been here, they have been part of our program and they have worked extremely hard. Those guys have done a good job in preseason, but I think we all know that we can't keep them all. How that is going to unfold is going to unfold. I am really appreciative of all of those young men because they came here and gave it everything they have. Unfortunately in the National Football League, you can't keep everybody on your roster."
On if the Browns expect to be active on the waiver wire and for it to be a busy day Sunday:
"I think it will be because if we see an opportunity to better our football team, we will as we have done. We have tried to do anything and everything we can to strengthen our team and get a little bit better here and there. We will continue to do so."
On if Coleman has shown enough to earn the job as the Browns' punt returner:
"I know he can do the job. I am not going to say it is just his job. He will definitely have an opportunity to be back there, but I don't know that he will be the one exclusive guy for the whole season. He will definitely get some opportunities back there."
On what DB Justin Gilbert showed during training camp and the preseason on special teams and defense and if the Browns will make every effort to keep him on the roster:
"Justin did some things better. Everything has an opportunity to be evaluated, everything that every player has done. Our goal and our job is to make sure that we keep the best players here. Do I think he has improved? Yeah. Are we going to sit down and evaluate and talk through every opportunity that a young man has had and we can see where they fit for our football team? We are going to do that, also."
On the Browns being penalized for having 12 defensive players on the field and then having 10 men for an ensuing play near the goal line during yesterday's game:
"I have to do a better job. That is totally on me. That is called coaching. That is my responsibility. I have to make sure that those things are shored up and taken care of. That is nobody else's fault. That buck stops with me. I have to make sure those things are right and done correctly."
