Mason Graham - Head Coach, browns Event: Press Conference | Date: 2026-09-11 | Full transcript (primary source).
Mason Graham, Head Coach of the Browns, addressed the media during a press conference on September 11, 2026, as the team prepares for the upcoming NFL season. The conference focused on the team's readiness and strategies as they approach their first game of the year.
Transcript
Unknown: this year. I mean, it seems extra long for me because I had to come in a week earlier with the rookie. So for me, yeah, because I had that little foot thing in OTA. So I was dealing with that and I had to come back a week early because I was still working through that.
Unknown: What's it mean to be one of the week one campus? It means a lot. I mean, cool recognition from I think I don't really know who made that decision. I think the coaches, but, you know, huge recognition, honored. It's gonna be cool to go out there on Sunday for that coin talks.
Unknown: What do you think of that Jackson O'Lan? Obviously they don't want you to get near Trevor, but whatever you've been able to look at on film. Yeah, I feel like they work well together. Obviously I don't have a lot of weapons on the outside, so I feel like they're gonna try and use that and then kind of just have a good balance between the run and pass games. So we got to be ready for that. Just play our technique. You know, our technique is going to take us to where we need to go. So just playing our initial technique and everything will follow after that. Smart QB operates at a high level, can also make plays with his feet, scrambling around, so it's gonna be a good challenge for us.
Graham: Mason, Austin Farmer is going to start a right card. I don't know if you've had a lot of chances to go against him, but if you have, what have you kind of seen?
Unknown: Yeah, I feel like he's a stout, you know, he's a bigger guy. He's used to playing tackle, so he's got long arms, big body, so he's done a good job from what I've seen. Excited for him to get the opportunity.
Unknown: How do you think a bigger guy like that playing guard, how does that kind of change things for him? I mean, it just takes up more space, harder to get around. Yeah, he's got, the long arms thing is something that I've noticed too.
Unknown: What would people say this season is different about you guys? Just like Rudy says every week, the heart and mind fits, so we want to put that on full display. We've been trying to embody that throughout training camp and just kind of bring all of that to week one and just kind of start the season off and put good stuff on tape that we're proud of.
Unknown: You've talked about how you want to take a jump right from year one to year two, so how excited are you for week one and getting this going to see just about that? Yeah, I'm looking forward. We've all put in a lot of work, me included, so just looking for the opportunity to go against someone else and getting real game live action, so it should be fun.
Unknown: Do you feel like this is going to be a breakout? I mean, I'd be ashamed if I didn't say yeah.
Unknown: Mason, Alex Wright talked to us yesterday about wanting, it's going to be tough for him to not be on the field, but still being around the team and supporting you guys while he's rehabbing. What does that mean to you to have a guy that's so dedicated to seeing through this product and being around this team despite having the injury that interests you?
Unknown: Yeah, tragic will happen. Obviously, Alex being around super vocal guy, especially in our D-line room, he's one of the only guys that has been here for five, six years, something like that. He's been through ups and downs and seen everything happen the past five years, so that's a really guy that we lean on, especially in the D-line room. That's a defense, so huge loss, but he's always around, still try to hear his voice over here and there when he talks, so it's been good.
Unknown: Obviously, he's been a lot of camp without Malik out there as he was rehabbing. What has it been like to have him back? You guys were obviously born pretty dynamic doing it together in the middle of that team that's last year, so to get him back out there and be working with him last year isn't what that did.
Unknown: I mean, it kind of feels the same as it did last year. We kind of just take that next step. We've had a whole year playing with each other, so we kind of used that by now. We do stuff in the off-season, too, always in constant communication, so obviously a really good player and excited for him to come back and be able to play out there on Sunday and be out there with me.
Unknown: Do you feel like now that you have your team here behind you, you know, the international league, you feel comfortable in the scheme, do you feel like you'll play with more explosiveness, more reckless abandon, and really maybe pop some more? Yeah, I feel like I said this last year. Looking back at last year, I didn't fully, fully get the scheme yet, the attack front, but after the whole year and then this off-season, I think I'm 100% with the attack scheme now. I'm not restricting myself and reverting back to my old ways, so really just embodied what our defense does and hopefully ready to take off.
Unknown: Does playing Jacksonville mean anything more, just given that you're kind of part of that big blockbuster trade at the top of the draft line? Nah, it doesn't mean.
Unknown: Can you turn your clock back one second? What do you mean? Nah.
Unknown: Nice one. I haven't heard the end of that one yet. How many jokes have you heard along those lines? People would just say like side comments. It wasn't like super attacked, but definitely heard it from coaches and players.
