BEREA, Ohio -- Cleveland Browns coach Hue Jackson will give nothing when it comes to his emphasis on rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer avoiding turnovers.
"We can't turn the ball over, and we have turned it over way too much," Jackson said Monday.
Jackson agrees that developing and finding out about Kizer is vital this season, but clearly turnovers are his line in the sand.
He explained himself in more detail Monday, and the more he talked, the clearer his thinking became -- and there was logic to it. The emphasis means that Jackson won't shrug off an overthrow like Kizer had late in the first half because the ball sailed, and he won't accept Kizer not seeing a safety drop from the flat into coverage as he rolled out.
"You don't leave the quarterback in if you are going to continue turning the ball over," Jackson said. "I think everybody sees development as 'leave a guy out there and let him keep playing.' Part of development is to sit down. Sit down and learn that if you turn it over, you aren't going to be out there."
Kizer was not arguing.
"Obviously, there is a big part of my game that has been recognized as a flaw and that is turning the ball over," Kizer said. "That is not helping our team win. In every other aspect of this game, I feel like I am doing a pretty good job and I am developing. It is on me to now make sure that if I do get another opportunity to be back out there playing that I continue to develop everywhere else but also address the biggest flaw of my game right now, and that is turnovers."
Everyone who speaks about Jackson talks about him being straightforward and demanding accountability. He talked glowingly of Kizer when he named him the starter but also said he would make the same demands of him that he would a veteran.
From the day he was hired, Jackson has emphasized not turning the ball over, especially when the team has the potential to score. Turnovers hurt the team, he said -- and the Browns are a team desperate for their first win.
"We can't sugarcoat that," Jackson said.
The numbers are not pretty:
Kizer leads the league in interceptions with 11.
He has thrown eight interceptions inside the opposing 40, an NFL high, per ESPN Stats and Information.
His passer rating is 47.8, last in the NFL. No other quarterback is below 70. He also is last in Total QBR at 17.4
Finally, his interception percentage is 6.1 percent. No other NFL quarterback is higher than 4.3 percent, per ProFootballReference.com. The 16th-ranked player (halfway through the top 32) is 2.0 percent.
"There is not a team across this league -- there are 31 other teams -- that is going to keep a quarterback out there if they keep turning it over," Jackson said. "You can go survey any team you want. They are not going to do that."
"When you are not producing and you are not leading your team in the right direction of getting a win through turnovers, the best guy should be on the field," Kizer said. "For me, it is about doing whatever I can to make sure that I prove to him that I am the best guy on the field."
There are complicating factors. The roster is lacking in several places, especially receiver. Perennial Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas is out for the season, and if overtime didn't make it apparent, it will be evident soon just how valuable Thomas has been. And the quarterbacks behind Kizer on the roster remind nobody of top-tier NFL starters.
In that sense, Jackson's hands are tied given the roster he has to work with. But he wasn't addressing that. He stressed that part of growth and development is a player showing what he has learned when he's on the field.
"If I stick you back out there and you do the same things, the same thing is going to happen: You are going to come over here and stand next to me," Jackson said. "That is just the way it has to be."