Myles Garrett’s Status Unknown v. Green Bay Packers
By Paul Bretl
The Cleveland Browns are already dealing with a number of players on the reserve/COVID list, it’s also a short week for them having just played on Monday Night, and now there is the possibility that they will be without Myles Garrett against the Green Bay Packers.
Garrett would injure his groin during Monday Night’s loss to Las Vegas but would still manage to stay on the field for 61 of the Browns defensive snaps. But as Garrett said after the game via PFT, he had no intentions of sitting out.
"“You’re going to have to kill me to take me off that field.”"
Garrett is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate this season and a true game wrecker. According to PFF ($$), Garrett has logged 68 pressures, including 17 sacks, and 16 tackles for loss. His 68 pressures are tied for the third-most among edge rushers, while Garrett also ranks fourth in pass-rush productivity, and for what it’s worth, he’s PFF’a highest-graded edge rusher as well.
"“He’s just a monster,” said Aaron Rodgers. “He’s a fantastic player. He legitimately has gold jacket possibilities in his future.”"
Will Myles Garrett play against the Green Bay Packers?
So far Garrett has missed the first two days of practice this week, creating more uncertainty around his status for this Saturday’s game.
"“We’re just going to have to work through it,” Stefanski said, via 92.3 The Fan and PFT. “He has an injury there. . . . We’ll see. I’ll get my eyes on him today and we’ll see how it goes.”"
It goes without saying, but whether Garrett plays or does not will have huge implications on the upcoming matchup. While Yosh Nijman and Dennis Kelly have held up well, all things considered, facing Garrett is a whole new challenge.
As we’ve discussed before, there are ways that Matt LaFleur and Aaron Rodgers can help their offensive line—this includes being the aggressor and leaning on the run game, quick passes, screens, tight end chips, pre-snap motion, and play-action. We’ve seen the Green Bay Packers find success with these strategies against other stout pass rushers and defensive fronts.
As good as Rodgers has been this season overall, he has struggled when under pressure, ranking near the bottom of the NFL in completion rate, yards per attempt, and passer rating when under duress per PFF.
In addition to possibly being without Garrett, Cleveland may also not have Jadeveon Clowney, who is still on the reserve/COVID list. This season Clowney has 44 pressures and seven sacks.
Although Garrett will want to be out on the field no matter what, we will have to wait and see if that ends up being the case. Either way, his presence, or lack thereof, is going to impact this game.