'He is the Defense!' Texas A&M Aggies LB Myles Garrett the Key to a Cleveland Browns Win vs. San Francisco 49ers

One of the more intriguing matchups in the NFL this week takes place as the San Francisco 49ers head north to Cleveland to take on the Browns and Aggies legend Myles Garrett.

The Aggies in the NFL are making huge splashes this season, with running back De'Von Achane tearing it up in Miami, receiver Mike Evans catching passes in Tampa Bay and A&M legend Von Miller finally getting back on the field in Buffalo. 

One of the more intriguing matchups in the league this week takes place as the San Francisco 49ers head north to Cleveland to take on the Browns and another Aggies legend in Myles Garrett. 

The 49ers are the NFL's hottest team at 6-0 and just issued an obliterating 42-10 embarrassment to the reeling Dallas Cowboys. San Francisco hopes to continue the momentum into Week 7. 

Browns defensive end Myles Garrett gets the crowd pumped up on third down during the second half against the Steelers, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022, in Cleveland Browns
Myles Garrett / Jeff Lange-USA TODAY NETWORK

One of the things standing in the way between the  49ers and an unblemished 7-0 record is Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett. The potential impact of Garrett on the upcoming matchup was discussed on NFL Network. When asked about the defensive plan that Cleveland might come up with, Marc Ross said it'll take a huge game by Garrett to make an impact on the 49ers offense.

"When I look at the defense, it's really Myles Garrett ... He needs to have a monster game to come through and really wreck the game," Ross said. "He's the key to everything they've got going there and he needs to have like a T.J. Watt-like dominant performance to have a chance with that Cleveland D."

Garrett will certainly have to perform at a high level, and even then the Browns will be hard-pressed to compete with the 49ers' offense. Cleveland's defensive stats are misleading this season, and the unit probably isn't as good as what the numbers say.

Cleveland gave up only one total touchdown in Weeks 1-3, then allowed four touchdowns in Week 4 to the Ravens. But digging deeper, the offenses they matched up against were ranked No. 26 (Tennessee), No. 27 (Cincinnati), and No. 29 (Pittsburgh) in the league. The Ravens were ranked No. 17 when they met in Week 4. 

So the stats for Cleveland's defense look better than what the reality is. As for Garrett, who is arguably the Browns' best player on either side of the ball, through four games the former Aggies defensive end has totaled 10 total tackles, 5.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and 13 quarterback hits this season.


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Timm Hamm
TIMM HAMM