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The Pittsburgh Steelers weren’t on the wrong end of a record-setting Myles Garrett sack. They were, however, on the wrong end of the scoreboard, and Garrett believes there was a strong correlation between the two.
“To an extent, I feel like they were more worried about keeping me away from Aaron [Rodgers] than, you know, getting the win, and I think that’s what came back to bite them,” Garrett said after the Browns’ 13-6 upset win in Cleveland. “They’ll have to fight it out with Baltimore next week, but I’m just proud of the guys for fighting and getting this win. That’s the main thing, and I’m always gonna keep it that.”
Garrett, who was often chipped by a running back or tight end or outright double-teamed, managed just two pressures on 43 pass rush snaps, a 4.7% rate. That was his second-lowest of the season; he had just a 4.2% pressure rate in the Week 6 game against Pittsburgh.
Garrett remains at 22 sacks on the season, one behind breaking the record of 22.5 shared by Michael Strahan (2001) and T.J. Watt (2021). Sunday represented Garrett’s first game without at least a half-sack since that aforementioned Week 6 game against Pittsburgh. The Cleveland defense still dominated, though: Alex Wright and Grant Delpit both sacked Rodgers, who had a season-low 4.3 yards per attempt. As a result, the Steelers will host the Baltimore Ravens for the AFC North title in Week 18; Pittsburgh could have clinched the division with a win in Cleveland.
Garrett, meanwhile, will have one more shot at the record when the Browns visit the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18. Garrett had two sacks in the Week 1 matchup between the two teams.
