Myles Garrett’s Ceiling Has Somehow Been Raised
Photo Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
While most of Browns Nation gives their bye-week attention to the conspiracy theories surrounding Deshaun Watson’s Week 4 absence, there are better options for talkers.
“You never hear a head coach call a QB out like that.”@RSherman_25 says Kevin Stefanski’s criticism of Deshaun Watson was “strange” pic.twitter.com/vh3LHipKJn
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) October 3, 2023
At the top of that better options list is Myles Garrett.
Yes, Garrett is an all-time great. And yes, we’ve discussed said greatness often, but with the Cleveland Browns having finally put the pieces around him, Garrett seems poised to launch himself into a stratosphere that even his biggest supporters may not have thought possible. Whether he’s being comically chased by two tight ends at the line of scrimmage or busy setting a sack pace that would break the single-season record, it’s obvious to anyone watching Garrett is on the verge of something special.
“If he’s not around the quarterback, it’s because they got four guys over there, they’re running away, or they do something with quick game…you know I’m so tired of hearing ‘Oh, and don’t forget about myles Garrett.’ Myles Garrett is THE GUY,” Former Eagles defensive end Chris Long told NFL Network’s Rich Eisen in a recent interview.“You know last year Nick Bosa had the best year he’s DPOY and Micah Parsons is the second coming of LT but Myles Garrett is Julius Peppers. I mean, he’s like a more compact Pep. I’ve never seen a guy that big run on the side of his cleat as often as he does top of the rush. And he plays on grass…when I played with Robert Quinn, you know, he had 18 and a half one year, he’d run sideways you know, but he was 260 and we got the turf. Myles, he’s 285 and he’s on grass and he’s digging those spikes in at the top of the rush and he’s as good as anybody.”
The additions of Dalvin Tomlinson and Za’Darius Smith have created a freedom for Garrett that opposing offenses simply can’t afford. Tomlinson, perhaps this offseason’s most underrated signing, has an incredible knack for eating up blockers and preventing them from getting to the second level. For the first time in years, the Browns’ linebacking corps has been free to roam and make plays. When you stack an extra pass rushing specialist like Smith in front of those now free backers, opposing defenses have no choice except to spread their attention around, a privilege Garrett has rarely received in his career.
And that’s just the tip of Jim Schwartz iceberg.
“Jim has the group he had with us, we didn’t have Myles Garrett but we had Fletcher Cox, [but I mean] he has the depth we had in that 2017 D-line room, but he’s got the guys on the back end,” Long todd Eisen. “You know Ward, Delpit, all those guys, they can man up. They can compete and you can’t get anything going against them. This defense is a lot of fun to watch.”
Schwartz’s scheme and ingenuity have been at the forefront of some of the NFL’s best pass rushes over the last decade. With him employing his knowledge on a group this strong, Garrett’s incredibly high ceiling has somehow been raised. Maybe he finally gets the long-overdue Defensive Player Of the Year Award. Perhaps he’ll become the first player in NFL history to put 25 sacks on the board in a single season. The sky is truly the limit now that Garrett has help.
Yes, football is a team sport, and the only prize that truly matters is a Lombardi Trophy. But Garrett has, year in and year out, given his all for this city, and it would be more than wonderful to see him finally get his due.
Much was made in the preseason about whether or not this will finally be Cleveland’s year. Additions on both sides of the ball give reason to believe that, for the first time in a long time, the Browns could find themselves in contender conversations. Through four games, it’s hard to say exactly how far Kevin Stefanski and Co. can take this improved roster, but what is looking inarguable is that this improved roster can take Myles Garrett to the top.
Up Next