Myles Garrett needs four sacks in the Cleveland Browns' last five games to set the NFL single-season record.
Given the recent performance of the All-Pro pass rusher and his opponent this week, there's a chance that could happen on Sunday when the Browns host the Tennessee Titans.
“I hope he gets it. But I just pray he doesn't get it this week,” Titans three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons said.
Garrett has 19 sacks and is aiming to surpass the 22 1/2 mark shared by Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Strahan and Pittsburgh's T.J. Watt.
Titans rookie Cam Ward was sacked 48 times. He was sacked at least twice in each of his 12 games, including eight games in which he was sacked at least four times.
Garrett has lost the ball in six straight games, scoring 15 in that span and reaching 19 points on the season, the most by a player through 12 games since sacks became an official statistic in 1982, and this season has more than three teams: Cincinnati (18), Carolina (18) and San Francisco (16).
“Probably the best player at the position. And he proved it throughout the game,” Ward said of Garrett. “So we've got to do our job of not letting him impact the game every play. Try to keep that under control and just continue to execute our plays and just try to execute on the field.”
The two QBs behind Ward in sacks didn't handle Garrett very well. Las Vegas' Geno Smith was sacked four times and the Browns totaled 10 sacks, their second-most in a game since 1982. Garrett's team-high five sack game came against New England's Drake Maye.
If Garrett has four sacks on Sunday, he will become the first player in NFL history to play three games (minimum four in a season). He had at least one sack in each of the four games he faced the Titans, including 3 1/2 in 2023.
Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said the team allowing the most sacks doesn't fundamentally change the game plan.
“When the focus is not necessarily on the number of sacks they threw, and when we look at film, a lot of times you're looking at games that you think are similar or close to what you're playing, so maybe you don't even see all of those things,” he said. “I would say this, like when our D-line creates pressure, fights turnovers, just wreaks havoc, we're at our best and we need those guys to do that for us, not just in the passing game, but in the run game.”
Ward was pressured on 37.5% of his refusals. The Browns rank fourth in the league with a 38.9% pressure rate.
Even though the Browns (3-9) are confident of their 23rd losing season since 1999, Garrett is still trying to maintain the same focus.
“We have to keep fighting to win. Whoever our next opponent is will give it their best and let the chips fall where they please,” he said. “I can't worry about what the end result will be. Just worry about trying my best every game.”
Just win
The Titans (1-11) are the only NFL team with one win, giving them the No. 1 overall seed for the second straight season. They have lost seven in a row and need a win to avoid matching their fewest wins in a full season since 1973. The idea of getting the No. 1 pick in exchange for more talent to help Ward in 2026 is not something the Titans want to entertain with five games left.
“I can tell you that no one in this building talks about the No. 1 choice, and that is outside noise, and we try to block out outside noise,” Simmons said. “Right now we're trying to figure out how to win another game, get our second win of the season.”
Sanders prepares for third start
Sheader Sanders is looking for his first home win since the Browns struggled in a 26-8 loss to San Francisco last week.
While Sanders has thrown behind the line on 24.6 percent of his attempts, the highest mark for a Browns quarterback this season, he has four catches of over 30 yards in two starts, compared to two in his first 11 games.
Even though Sanders and Ward trained together during the draft, he doesn't consider the matchup personal. “I'm just playing against a different opponent. It's another week. Every week we face great defenders. It doesn't add anything,” Sanders said.
Help Cam
Simmons said he knows Sanders keeps the play alive by running around. Simmons isn't too worried about Sanders right now because he has a bigger challenge ahead of him.
“My job is to make sure my quarterback is my quarterback. I think we can help Cam,” Simmons said. “If you look at all the defensive stats, we've had nothing but one strip sack all year. It's like, how can we get Cam into a better position?”
Last week, the Titans held the Jaguars to five players with three and outs, but were unable to force a turnover.
Tennessee sacked three quarterbacks last week, the fifth such game in the past six. The Titans have 21 sacks since Week 7, which ranks them fourth in the NFL in that span. However, Tennessee only had 10 total takeaways: five interceptions and five fumble recoveries.
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Cleveland tight ends Harold Fannin and David Njoku, who combined for 797 receiving yards. The duo also accounted for five touchdowns while getting into the red zone 14 times.
Tennessee has allowed the 10th fewest yards (560) and only four touchdowns (seventh).
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