Every time the Pittsburgh Steelers face off against the Cleveland Browns in the AFC North, it’s no secret that the No. 1 goal is to slow down Myles Garrett.
Garrett has the ability to wreck a game coming off the edge, and he’s had plenty of success against the Steelers throughout his career.
With Kenny Pickett and Diontae Johnson now on the Browns’ roster, this season’s matchups between the two teams promise to be even more intriguing. During Wednesday’s media availability, Pickett was asked how the Steelers used to approach defending Garrett.
“You’re gonna get four hands on him at all times, you know, especially on third downs,” Pickett said. “You’re sliding, you’re chipping, you’re putting two men on him. And that just affects everything in the passing game because it takes away an underneath route, where guys can start dropping into second-level and third-level throws.
“He’s truly a game-wrecker type of player when it comes to game planning. You always have to know where 95 is and have a plan for him.”
Nothing Pickett said was particularly surprising—it’s the approach many teams take, using double teams to try and contain Garrett. Cleveland’s defensive identity will continue to center around its front, now bolstered by the additions of Mason Graham and Maliek Collins alongside Garrett.
The Steelers might even get a chance to go up against their former first-rounder, Pickett, if he starts either of the times the two teams meet this season. He’s one of four quarterbacks in contention to win the starting job for Cleveland in 2025.
Regardless of who lines up under center, the Steelers’ No. 1 task will be slowing down Garrett. In 14 career games against Pittsburgh, the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year has recorded 13 sacks and four forced fumbles.
It’s interesting that Pickett gave some insight into how the Steelers used to view Garrett. But don’t expect that to give Cleveland any sort of edge—Garrett is used to being double-teamed. What may be more notable is that the question came from Cleveland’s media.
Analyst Reckons Myles Garrett Might Be Playing With the 'Most Talented' Defensive Line He’s Ever Had in Cleveland
Myles Garrett is one of the few first-round picks the modern-era Cleveland Browns can look at and feel good about. He was the No. 1 overall pick, has racked up six All-Pro selections and six Pro Bowls, won a DPOY award, and his 102.5 sacks since being drafted rank second over that span. Unfortunately, he hasn’t played on many great defenses, aside from that league-leading unit he led in 2023. But will his 2025 group change that?
In 2023, the Browns had put together arguably the best defensive unit since the 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers. They led the league in total defense, allowing just 270 yards a game—including just 164.7 pass yards a game—and fielded three different Pro Bowlers. That number would surely have been higher if this were a more marquee brand than the Browns.
However, despite that elite group just two years ago, one Browns pundit, Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show‘s Mike Lucas, believes that the upcoming 2025 edition of the Browns’ defensive front will be the best Myles Garrett has seen in his eight years in the league.
“On paper, at a minimum, a defensive line of Myles, alongside a healthy Mike Hall, a top-five overall pick in defensive tackle Mason Graham, and either Alex Wright or JTS, the former first-round pick they signed. In theory, that could be the most talented front he’s played with,” Lucas said.
The addition of Mason Graham out of Michigan with the No. 5 overall pick will definitely benefit Garrett. As Lucas pointed out, Garrett is double-teamed as much as any player in the NFL, and bringing in a guy who wreaks havoc like Graham into the middle of the line is huge.
“We’ve seen all the advanced analytics … Myles gets double-teamed more than any other team in football. If some of those other guys, not all of them, but 2/3 or 3/5, however you wanna parse that up, if they can generate relative, consistent pressure, it should open up so many more opportunities for Myles to attack 1-on-1.”
However, taking a look at the group Garrett is playing with apart from Graham, it’s hard to see how Lucas came to this conclusion. Graham will probably turn out to be the best player Garrett has played with on the defensive line so far, but beyond him, it seems like more of the same.
In 2023, Graham’s spot was held by proven veteran Dalvin Tomlinson. The other edge was manned by established pass rusher Za’Darius Smith, though he finished with just 5.5 sacks that year.
Right now, 2023 fourth-round pick Isaiah McGuire is listed as the other starting end. He has just 3.5 career sacks. Neither Joe Tryon-Shoyinka nor Alex Wright has ever recorded more than 5.0 sacks in a season. There’s also 2024 second-rounder Michael Hall, but he played only eight games last year.
As Lucas’ co-host, Adam the Bull, pointed out, every name that we’ve mentioned apart from Garrett is completely unproven at the highest NFL level.
It’s fine for Browns fans to get excited. But reporters and analysts like Lucas have a responsibility. They should probably try to come up with more reasonable and valuable insights than this one, which feels like pure speculation with little to no supporting evidence.
