DE Myles Garrett thinks they have the chance to be a special defense. Sunday’s performance against the Titans was their latest example of how they can be just that – especially on the Titans’ only scoring drive with the 44-yard field goal, they finished the drive with minus-nine yards on the entire drive.
“Yeah, I mean our defense is playing lights out,” Stefanski said. “So, from the players to Coach (Jim) Schwartz, the defensive coaches. We’re playing at a high level; now you have to continue to play at a high level. Every week is going be a different challenge. But the way we stopped the run, which we knew, we know that when you’re playing Tennessee, you have to stop the run and you got to stop it getting off the bus. And I thought the guys did a really nice job knowing what the challenge was in front of us and I thought they stepped up to the challenge.”
Heading into Sunday’s game, the Browns knew one of their biggest points of emphasis would be in stopping the run and limiting RB Derrick Henry. In the first two weeks of the season, Henry rushed for 143 yards on 40 carries. And they were able to do just that. Henry finished with just 20 rushing yards on 11 carries, averaging 1.8 yards per carry.
“I mean, catch him before he gets going,” Garrett said. “Make him stop his feet, change angles. He gets his feet going in one direction. He’s a locomotive, so just trying to get him a little bit off balance and make sure that he turns his shoulders to the sideline and goes east and west.”
But it wasn’t just Henry. They had to apply pressure on QB Ryan Tannehill, and the Browns were also able to do just that. They sacked Tannehill five times on Sunday, with Garrett leading the way with 3.5 sacks.
The Browns defensive performances through the first three weeks of the season have been consistent and showcased their potential as a unit. They are taking pride in what they have been able to show but know that they also have to continue proving who they are as a defense.
Garrett said it comes down to how they prepare each week, how they work and take care of their bodies. That all leads to their success on the field. But Garrett likes what he’s seeing from the defense so far.
“I think it’s a pretty good glimpse and just got to keep on showing it,” Garrett said. “Like you said, it’s week three and every week is a new week. We got to be consistent. I got to keep everybody on the field healthy and got to adjust and adapt to each team. Got to know the game plan and attack and execute just like we did.”
