Brendan Gulick reports all the latest on the Browns from Berea on October 20th 2023.
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00:10 Well, hey everybody and welcome to the Cleveland Browns training facility in
00:13 Berea.
00:14 This is your daily practice report as the Browns get ready for
00:17 their week seven matchup against the Indianapolis Colts coming up on Sunday.
00:21 Brennan Gulick with you and we had a chance to hear from Kevin Stefanski,
00:25 from TC McCartney, the tight ends coach, from Jason Tarver,
00:28 the linebackers coach, from Miles Garrett, and certainly from David Nujoku in
00:33 the locker room after practice as well.
00:35 Team practiced on the indoor field today because they're trying to assimilate as
00:40 best they can to what they're expecting they're gonna have when they get rolling
00:43 on Sunday out in Indianapolis.
00:45 So rather than practicing outside again today, they went inside and
00:48 went onto the turf.
00:50 In the meantime, why don't we start with a little note from Kevin Stefanski,
00:53 because obviously the big question is, will DeSean Watson play this week?
00:57 And I think everybody is hopeful the answer to that question is yes.
01:01 DeSean practiced today.
01:02 I'll share a couple of my thoughts from what I saw in just a moment.
01:05 But in the meantime, when asked about it,
01:07 here's what Coach Stefanski had to say at his press conference this afternoon.
01:11 >> You expect Watson to start Sunday at quarterback?
01:13 >> Yeah, I wanna see how he responds over the next 48 hours,
01:16 based on that full workload that he just got.
01:18 But he looked good today.
01:19 >> So it's trending in that direction, fair to say?
01:23 >> Those are your words.
01:24 >> Would it be similar to what happened before the Baltimore game,
01:28 where does he have to- >> We won't work him out.
01:30 Just wanna see how his body responds to, again, a full workload today.
01:35 >> Responding well from yesterday though to- >> Yes, yeah,
01:37 again, making progress every day.
01:38 >> What is he wearing on his shoulder, Kevin?
01:42 It looks like some kind of device.
01:44 >> I don't know.
01:45 That's the truth.
01:46 >> Is his face normal, the rest of the way?
01:49 >> Yes.
01:50 >> How do you think he looked?
01:53 I mean, his first few days, he seemed out of the field.
01:55 How do you see him from a throwing perspective?
01:58 >> Yeah, I thought he looked good.
01:59 >> Do you have more velocity on his ball today?
02:05 >> I think every day, when you're working through something,
02:08 you continue to make progress every single day.
02:11 Hard to answer that question when I'm staring at that hat.
02:13 It's hard.
02:14 I won't look next time.
02:15 >> Verify he had a full day today.
02:18 He was not limited?
02:19 >> Correct.
02:19 Full day.
02:22 >> So who will be your backup on Sunday?
02:24 >> PJ Walker's the backup.
02:25 >> Being able to throw the ball, we've seen him throw some 30-yard passes,
02:31 but can he throw it harder than that if he needs to?
02:34 >> Yeah.
02:34 >> Of course, the hat there that was referenced, it's not a football hat.
02:43 It was an Arizona Diamondbacks hat, and the Philadelphia Phillies fan,
02:47 that Kevin Stefanski is, knowing where they're at in the NLCS,
02:51 they get a hard time looking at the D-backs hat.
02:52 So that was the wisecrack there.
02:54 But look, all things considered, from what Kevin said after practice today when he
02:59 talked to us, and with what I was able to see during the 15 minutes or
03:03 so that we were allowed to observe the team, we basically get to watch stretching
03:09 and then some drills at the beginning.
03:10 There's no full team drills.
03:12 It's just kind of like warmups at the beginning of the day.
03:15 But I thought DeSean looked like he was trying to let it rip a little bit more
03:20 compared to what we saw from him outside yesterday.
03:22 I don't wanna pretend to know that he was feeling better, but I can tell you for
03:27 sure I thought I saw him put a little bit more velocity on some of the passes that
03:31 he was working with receivers on.
03:33 There were some high lofting throws that were gonna sail a good 30, 35 yards.
03:38 They had a lot of goal line stuff where they were just working on running some
03:41 routes as they were working down toward the end zone.
03:44 It was just one-on-one drill stuff.
03:46 So nothing crazy, nothing high intensity.
03:49 But I thought there were instances where the ball looked like it was coming out of
03:52 his hand nicely.
03:53 He did have his shoulder taped up, but
03:54 I didn't think it was prohibiting him from actually throwing the ball.
03:58 So as Kevin said, hopefully he continues to progress well over the next 48 hours
04:03 and that he'd be able to play on Sunday.
04:05 But Kevin would not go so
04:07 far as to say that he is going to be the starting quarterback.
04:09 Like he said, those are your words, not mine,
04:11 to the reporter that asked him that question.
04:13 So hopefully we're gonna see DeSean on Sunday.
04:16 I think every Browns fan wants to see that be the case.
04:19 Fingers crossed that he continues to progress well and
04:21 that he can get out there and play for Cleveland.
04:23 In the meantime, we also had a chance yesterday to hear from Jim Schwartz.
04:27 And there is an awful lot of conversation these days about how high
04:32 achieving this Browns defense is.
04:34 But we did not have a chance to include this in yesterday's practice report, so
04:37 I wanted to put it in today.
04:39 Coach Schwartz, thrilled with the way things are going, but
04:42 he's not taking home any trophies after week five.
04:44 >> A couple weeks ago, you talked about dealing with success.
04:48 D-Cuts is getting a lot of love nationally right now.
04:52 How do you tamp it down and make sure?
04:56 >> Well, they don't give out any trophies for five weeks.
05:00 I think we all know that.
05:02 It's a long season, and we're gonna have to survive a lot of highs and
05:06 lows throughout the season.
05:08 We have some experienced players,
05:09 we have some experienced coaches that have been there that know that.
05:13 And I think that's one of the things that keeps us grounded.
05:16 So let me know when the five week stats are part of the tiebreaker.
05:23 When they are, we'll really concentrate on that.
05:28 We're trying to be good each and every game, find a way to give ourselves
05:32 a chance to win every Sunday and try to be consistent.
05:36 As the NFL, you're not always gonna have a great performance every week, but
05:40 we need to find a way to minimize our poor performances, minimize our poor plays,
05:45 and accentuate our positives, and keep our eyes on that destination.
05:51 Sometimes you can react and overreact to short term things.
05:57 You can paddle the canoe too hard on one side, and then you're adjusting,
06:02 and pretty soon you're just weaving, and you're constantly trying to course,
06:05 excuse me, course correct.
06:07 Instead of keeping your eye on that point in the distance, and
06:12 sort of keeping yourself on the right course.
06:16 >> I love the intensity, I love the focus, and frankly, I also love that
06:21 Jim Schwartz has kind of unlocked what feels like the true personality
06:26 of this defense.
06:27 He and Coach Tarver, who we'll hear from in just a second,
06:31 the linebackers coach, specifically said, we are watching not just game film of
06:35 what do you do between the lines, but we're watching on tape.
06:39 What are the guys doing on the sideline?
06:40 What are they doing when the plays are over?
06:42 They are literally actively trying to coach this team to have a little more fun,
06:48 and to celebrate big plays.
06:50 Because they want the emotional and mental investment,
06:56 and recognize that the game is hard, and that things happen.
07:00 But you gotta celebrate when things go really well, and it's contagious.
07:05 And I think that word was used a couple times, that it was contagious.
07:08 Which I thought was kinda cool, frankly.
07:10 You don't often hear a lot of coaches actually verbalize that.
07:14 And I give Jim Schwartz a lot of credit, because that seems to be something that
07:18 is a bit more new, since he came to Cleveland.
07:22 And he's obviously got this team playing at a really high level.
07:25 Speaking of Coach Tarver, look, Jeremiah Owusu-Koromoda had a great
07:29 second half last week.
07:30 Their room has played really well this year so far.
07:34 Obviously a little bit banged up with Takitaki and
07:38 Walker, both not at 100% health.
07:41 But I did ask Coach Tarver earlier today about the depth of that room, and
07:46 how he feels that the idea that a rising tide lifts all boats, if you will.
07:52 >> What do you like about the depth of the group?
07:56 >> Well, I think with Anthony and
07:58 Sione, you're really seeing those are the lead three right now.
08:04 But we're gonna need everybody, that's how these seasons work.
08:07 But what's great is they don't care.
08:10 Like they're all preparing to play any of the three positions.
08:13 Not all of them play.
08:15 The Mike so-called, that's the play caller yet, but
08:19 they're all preparing to do that.
08:21 And that's how we set the offseason and we said, we need to be,
08:25 it doesn't matter, we're just linebackers and we need to go.
08:27 So I like that depth and Sione and Anthony are working well off of each other.
08:32 Like say they, because they're on punting too, so they got to cover punts.
08:36 So we'll rotate who's in there of those three.
08:38 And then you'll see the other guys put in in different situations and
08:41 that'll come as the season goes.
08:42 But like the depth, like where we're going, and
08:45 it's because they all want to know every position.
08:47 They're all unselfish and they're doing it for the linebackers, but
08:52 most importantly for our defense and our team.
08:56 >> That's awesome perspective.
08:57 Love to see that from Coach Tarver and his unit.
09:00 And excited to see how these linebackers play with their hands full.
09:03 They got two really good running backs this weekend in Moss and
09:06 obviously in Taylor.
09:08 Indianapolis, when they run the football well, they're very good.
09:13 When they don't run the football well, they've really struggled.
09:16 That is certainly something we're gonna keep our eye on as we get ready for
09:19 this game on Sunday afternoon.
09:22 We'll wrap up just by telling you the official injury report that came out
09:25 today, Kareem Hunt, Harrison Bryant, of course, Deshaun Watson and
09:30 Greg Newsome are all listed as questionable and Sione Takitaki is out.
09:35 He will not play, not listed on the injury report today
09:39 was Anthony Walker who had a concussion last week.
09:41 So hopefully he is back and ready to go.
09:44 The Browns would certainly love to see him out there on Sunday.
09:47 Looking forward to the coverage coming up here this weekend and
09:50 we certainly hope you'll join us along the way.
09:52 We've got plenty to discuss getting ready for
09:53 the Browns in week seven in Indianapolis.
09:56 We'll be on site at Lucas Oil Stadium to bring you all the latest news and
10:00 information around the team all weekend long.
10:02 So hope you'll join us throughout the weekend.
10:04 Again, BrownsDigest.com,
10:06 the best place for all your latest Browns news and information.
10:10 And certainly would appreciate it if you'd subscribe to this YouTube channel so
10:13 that we can continue to do content for you just like this all season long.
10:17 I'm Brendan Gulick reporting from Berea.
10:19 We'll see you soon as the Browns get ready,
10:20 48 hours away from their week seven kickoff.
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