When the Browns’ Myles Garrett unleashes all hell on the Jets on Sunday, blame God.
“The good god was on his A-game when he built Myles,” Jets head coach Robert Saleh said before his team practiced at Florham Park on Friday.
That sounds about right for a defensive end listed as 6-foot-4 and 272 pounds while being chiseled in ways no 272-pound man should be. The first overall pick of 2017 lived up to expectations, terrorizing the quarterbacks with 60.5 sacks in 69 career games for Cleveland.
“He has no flaw in his game,” Saleh said of Garrett, who’s fast enough to chase just about any quarterback. “He’s big. He’s got everything. When he turns it on, he’s unblockable.”
“He’s an absolute problem,” Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said.
The Jets offense faces a tough challenge in Week 2.Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images
Right tackle Max Mitchell, a fourth-round rookie from Louisiana who was forced into the lineup due to injuries to Mekhi Becton and Duane Brown, may be asked to slow Garrett for the Cleveland showdown. The Jets start with Mitchell and left tackle George Fant on a makeshift offensive line that failed to impress in the season-opening loss to the Ravens.
“Definitely an opportunity,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell mostly stayed out in his first NFL career game. His second probably will be more difficult.
“It’s an opportunity to give my name a little bit more status there,” said the 22-year-old. “You don’t become the best if you don’t play the best.”
What makes things even more challenging for the Jets is the fact that Garrett, who sacked Carolina’s Baker Mayfield twice in Week 1, can’t get everyone’s attention. On the other side of the Browns’ defensive line is Jadeveon Clowney, who gives Cleveland a duo that jets guard Alijah Vera-Tucker said will likely be as impressive as any two pass rushers they’ll face.
If Garrett is primarily opposite left tackle, he would typically be Fant’s problem, while Mitchell would be tasked with Clowney more often. But the defensive ends can rotate.
“He’s a great athlete. He flexes well,” Mitchell said of Garrett. “Dude sums up what it means to have a great ending. Cover our P’s and Q’s this week and focus on myself this week. Hopefully we get out there and get the job done.”
The Browns’ Myles Garrett has terrorized various offenses in the NFL. Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images
It’s a difficult requirement for any offensive line, let alone one that’s shifted as much as the Jets’. The group didn’t play together enough as injuries opened up holes and Fant hopped from left to right and now left again.
Against that Jelling unit, the Browns will counter with two ends who have combined career 102 sacks. And the quarterback the Jets line will protect, Joe Flacco, who was sacked three times in Week 1, doesn’t have much mobility.
“They’ve been in this league for a minute now wreaking havoc,” Vera-Tucker said. “It’s a big challenge for us.”
And a big compliment to God’s chisel.
— Additional reporting by Zach Braziller