Cleveland Browns vs. New York Giants November 27, 2016

Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson got very emotional after the loss and had a meeting with the bosses, but says he'll be here.

(Joshua Gunter)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Browns coach Hue Jackson showed up late for his postgame press conference after about a 40-minute meeting with his bosses, but assured folks his job is still safe. Then, he welled up with tears when talking about how hard 0-12 is following Sunday's 27-13 loss to the Giants.

Asked if he'll take some time over the bye week to get away, he said, "I'm going to be very honest with all of you. I don't know how to do that yet. Because being 0-12 is probably the hardest thing ever.''

With that, he stopped, fought back the tears, pursed his lips and tapped the side of podium about eight times to compose himself.

He apologized for making making reporters wait so long, but said it wasn't to gather himself after his 12th straight loss.

"Oh no,'' he said. "Not at all. I was in a conversation with some people I need to have a conversation with. I probably got talking a little long-winded back there. Because again, I don't like this. I don't think anybody does. This is a hard deal. I was having conversations with our upper management about some things that I saw and some things that we've got to just continue to correct and look at to get better, so that's what it was more than anything.''

Did he receive assurances again from upper management that his job is safe and that they'll stay the course?

"I'm not worried about that,'' he said. "I'm going to be here, and I've said that to you guys before. Let me go on record saying I have full support of Jimmy and Dee (Haslam) and Sashi (Brown) and his crew. We're not apart or splintered or whatever term you guys want to use. There's none of that going on.''



He stressed that "in these times of toughness and times of crisis, you have to have good strong conversations. It's healthy and it's good. That's how you don't go through these things in the future. You work through those things and you talk to them so that you can come on the other side.''

He reiterated that the bosses have been supportive and that it goes both ways.



"But I don't like losing,'' said Jackson. "I never have and I never will. I've had my butt kicked up over my shoulders enough this season that I really don't need my butt kicked any more. I've got to figure out how not to get my butt kicked.''



He noted that such conversations with upper management take place after every game. They just usually don't take as long. Jackson normally takes the podium about 15 minutes after the game.

"I just took more time talking to them,'' he said. "That's all it was. We brief about injuries, and then we have conversations about where we think we could do better. (The public relations director) came in, tried to get me out, I needed to keep talking and, again, just thinking back through it all, it's been a long 12 weeks.

"Unfortunate for the men in that room over there we haven't been able to get them a win yet. We'll self-scout and see where we are and go from there.''

Jackson re-emphasized that "this will be the last time that we ever feel the way we feel. I know that in my heart. If you're going to get us, you'd better get us now. I'm not feeling like this next year. No way. Uh-uh.''

For the fourth time since he was hired, he also promised that he'll win a championship here.

"It's easy to point a lot of fingers at a lot of different people,'' he said. "The best place to point it is at me. I don't think I'm ever going to change that statement, even when we win the Super Bowl.''

It was more evident than ever just how hard Jackson is taking this winless season.



"I'm a fighter, we've got a bunch of fighters in that room,'' he said. "I don't lose many fights. I've never lost many fights. So we're going to keep swinging. I've lost a lot right now. More than I've ever lost in my life fighting. But we're going to keep fighting. We're going to fight the right fight and that's what we're going to do.''



Jackson refused to say that the complete rebuild was too much.



"I'm not going to get into all of that,'' he said. "We have the team we have, and we're going to just keep coaching the heck out of it and try to get it better.''



He acknowledged that he'll do a lot soul-searching and midnight oil burning over the bye this week.



"I know I will,'' he said. "I've got to find a way. I don't want to be down in the scoring zone and can't score. I haven't had that feeling in a long time. Normally you call a play and you know how it works and you score. I didn't become football illiterate overnight. I have to get this ball in the end zone and haven't been able to do it.''



Jackson said "I've never through this but I'm not going to fall off the cliff or anything like that. These guys, these players, this organization, Dee and Jimmy and Sashi and the group, they mean too much to me for me to ever feel like that. But do I get disappointed, frustrated? Yes. I don't want you to think I don't get mad or sad or disappointed. I go through all those emotions.



"But at the same time, I know what I signed up for, I know there are injuries and the things we've been through this season, where we are and where we're trying to go. You can either beat yourself up and I do that enough, or you can put your head down and keep fighting and push through this. And that's what we're going to do as a football team, as an organization.''



Jackson is heartened by the fact his players are still fighting so hard. The defense held the Giants to 14 points if you take away the two Browns turnover that resulted in 13 points.

"I don't just want to give that to the young guys because Joe Thomas fights. Danny Shelton fights. (Chris Kirksey) fights. All of our guys fight. Joe Haden fights,'' he said. "I don't think we have a guy that's not fighting.

"That's what makes it so hard. When you're fighting so hard and you play as hard as you can and you still come up short. There's an answer in there somewhere that's going to give us what we want and we've just got to keep searching for it.''