CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns star defensive end Myles Garrett entered Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers needing just one sack to break the NFL single-season sack record. Unfortunately, that didn't happen because it seemed that the Steelers cared a little bit more about not having the record set against them than they did about winning the game.
No team wants to be the one to have the record broken against them, and to that point, no quarterback wants to be in that highlight reel that will be etched into the history books. For Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a sack would have marked two major moments in Garrett's career—his first takedown of Rodgers and the single-season sack record.
And while it's true that Rodgers and the Steelers have gotten the ball out quickly all season, on Sunday, their entire offense felt rushed and full of checkdowns and shovel passes as Rodgers felt the pressure from Garrett. The reasoning will undoubtedly be the lack of top receiver DK Metcalf, who was out serving the first of a two-game suspension, and a young offensive line, but there was a clear level of discomfort from Rodgers that made it clear he was thinking too much about not letting Garrett put him in the history books.
"They kind of fell into the same line of thinking that the Packers did. You know, 'We’ll just throw everything at them and see if we can muster effort to win without it,'" Garrett said after the game.
Play after play, Garrett could be seen getting pressure on Rodgers, but he was able to dump the ball out before Garrett was able to make contact. It's been a strength all season, but Garrett did note it felt different this week.
“Quick? I mean, that’s their M.O. But of course they’re going to throw even quicker when I’m lined up on that side. They had a chipper there, sometimes two chippers, and getting it out quick. Sometimes they were rolling away, they were doing a little bit of everything. And I kind of come to expect that. I know they didn’t want me to be the one to break it against them," he said.
Garrett felt like he was the central part of the Steelers' game plan, which also isn't new considering the impact Garrett can have on opposing offenses, but felt like the target wasn't to slow him down to help their offense, but rather to prevent the record.
“To an extent, I feel like they were more worried about keeping me away from Aaron than getting the win, and I think that’s what came back to bite them. So they’ll have to fight it out with Baltimore next week. But I’m just proud of the guys for fighting and getting this one. That’s the main thing. And I’m always going to keep it that," Garrett said.
It's not just Garrett who feels like the game plan was to hold him from that sack record. In the Browns' locker room, there were shared sentiments.
"It's how it's felt the last couple of weeks. Everyone's more worried about the record. But obviously, we had to do some different things and really focus on trying to stop the run and not letting that be an issue and trying to force them to have to throw the ball. But yeah, teams aren't just going to let us pass rush and so we've got to force them to," defensive tackle Shelby Harris said after the game.
But while the Steelers held Garrett from the record on Sunday, they weren't able to contain everybody. Safety Grant Delpitt and defensive end Alex Wright both sacked Rodgers in their 13-6 win.
"Myles changes the game plan, but the way Carson [Schwesigner] and Grant and Mason [Graham] and Shelby, those guys stepped up, Alex Wright. It's just impressive. They kept us in the lead so we didn't have to go back and pass against that good pass rush and the guys kept fighting," left guard Joel Bitonio said in the locker room.
While it would have been nice to see Garrett get the sack record at home in front of the Dawg Pound on Sunday, in front of a crowd of fans who ended the game chanting Garrett's name, there is another opportunity on the horizon as the Browns close out the season against the Cincinnati Bengals on the road next week.
"Four more quarters, 60 more minutes, however you want to draw it up, but it'll get done," Garrett said.
