Myles Garrett entered Thursday's matchup with the rival Pittsburgh Steelers feeling a bit disrespected. But it'll be hard for Steel City to downplay his talent any longer, as the Cleveland Browns' star pass rusher logged three sacks in the first half alone, repeatedly collapsing Russell Wilson's pocket -- and forcing a fumble on the quarterback -- to help Cleveland out to a surprise 10-3 lead.
Garrett joked before Thursday's game that Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt, a current Defensive Player of the Year favorite with an NFL-high 12 tackles for loss, owed him an apology for last year's DPOY race. Garrett won the award in 2023, edging Watt for the top defensive accolade, only for Watt to hint on social media that he deserved it more, and offer no public acknowledgment of Garrett's performance.
"I've never complained about the trophy not being in my house and vice-versa," Garrett said. "He shouldn't be feeling two ways about it going to me. So, I'm just going to play the game; I don't play against T.J., he doesn't play against me. But we have a plan to go out and do what we're supposed to, win the game and dominate on defense. But it's up for grabs this year, and we'll see the best man win."
Garrett proved quickly on Thursday that he still belongs in the conversation, guaranteeing his seventh straight season with at least 10 sacks -- and moving up to No. 3 on the NFL's all-time leaderboard in that category, behind only Hall of Famers Reggie White (9 straight seasons) and John Randle (8). He's now also just 1.5 sacks away from becoming the third-fastest player to reach 100 career sacks.