Do The Cleveland Browns Have The Best Defensive Line Duo?

Here is how the Cleveland Browns' duo of Myles Garrett and Za'Darius Smith stacks up against several other top defensive line duos in the NFL.

Oct 29, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Za'Darius Smith (99) and defensive end Myles Garrett (95) celebrate after Garrett sacked Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) (not pictured) during the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports / Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

Last season, Myles Garrett, Za'Darius Smith and the rest of the Cleveland Browns' defense terrorized opposing quarterbacks specifically at home. The dangerous duo of two of the best veteran pass rushers in the NFL is back together once again headed into the 2024-25 season.

Myles Garrett will turn 29 towards the tail-end of this coming season and Za'Darius Smith will turn 32 right at the beginning of the season. As they both get older, they would both likely say that they have become wiser pass rushers as well. Last season, the two combined for 19.5 sacks, five forced fumbles and 51 solo tackles. Not only could they replicate that this coming year, but they could very well smash those numbers.

The 33rd Team posted a graphic on X asking fans their thoughts on who is the best defensive line duo in the NFL. The four options in the graphic were Garrett and Smith for the Browns, Aidan Hutchinson and D.J. Reader for the Detroit Lions, Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter for the Houston Texans and Maxx Crosby and Christian Wilkins for the Las Vegas Raiders.

Grade these DL duos 🔠 pic.twitter.com/WyRziu0jSe

— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) July 7, 2024

These are all four dangerous duos, but there needs to be more context if rankings are to be determined. Is this best pass rush duo, best run stopping duo or best duo for potential long-term success? With no stipulations, let's do a full deep-dive analysis in order to determine the final results.

Best Pass Rush Duo

Garrett and Smith were the only two on the same team last season, which means we haven't seen the other three combos together. This is important to note and stands as a point to remember that these combined statistics may not nearly look the same this coming season for the other groups. When merging numbers together though, here are the sack stats from the 2023-24 season.

• Garrett and Smith combined for 19.5 sacks with Cleveland.
• Hutchinson had 11.5 sacks with Detroit, while Reader had one sack in Cincinnati = 12.5 sacks
• Anderson Jr. had seven sacks with Houston, while Hunter had 16.5 with Minnesota = 23.5 sacks
• Crosby had 14.5 sacks with Las Vegas, while Wilkins had nine sacks with Miami = 23.5 sacks

With a tie at the top for the newly-formed Houston group and Las Vegas group, Danielle Hunter leading everyone in sacks last season amongst this group should be the tiebreaker. That that being settled, here are those standings.

1. Houston - Anderson Jr. and Hunter
2. Las Vegas - Crosby and Wilkins
3. Cleveland - Garrett and Smith
4. Detroit - Hutchinson and Reader

Nov 27, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Danielle Hunter (99) warms up before the game against the Chicago Bears at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Best Run Stopping Duo

The next category should pivot from pass rush to run stopping ability. Part of the difficulty evaluating this list is that two of the groups are defensive end plus defensive end, whereas two other groups are defensive end plus defensive tackle. Christian Wilkins is a strong pass rusher from the interior, but D.J. Reader is more of a nose tackle and slows down the run by eating up space. Using the combined stuff yards metric will help determine this category.

• Garrett had 13 and Smith had 11 = 24 STFYDS
• Hutchinson had 19 and Reader had one = 20 STFYDS
• Anderson Jr. had 14 and Hunter had 26 = 40 STFYDS
• Crosby had 23 and Wilkins had nine = 32 STFYDS

It is a bit surprising that Reader did not have more here, but most of his tackles must have come after at least a yard was picked up on the play. Once again Anderson Jr. and Hunter win a category but this time in commanding fashion.

1. Houston - Anderson Jr. and Hunter
2. Las Vegas - Crosby and Wilkins
3. Cleveland - Garrett and Smith
4. Detroit - Hutchinson and Reader

Jan 7, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) celebrates after sacking Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham (4) during the second quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Potential Long-Term Success

In this category, let's evaluate the potential success as a duo not just this next season but for the future as well. Obviously trades can happen, along with free agency pulling these duos apart. However, let's use the average ages to calculate the potential of these duos remaining together and performing at a high level for extended periods of time.

• Garrett is 28 and Smith is 31 = Average age of 29.5
• Hutchinson is 23 and Reader is 30 = Average age of 26.5
• Anderson Jr. is 22 and Hunter is 29 = Average age of 25.5
• Crosby is 26 and Wilkins is 28 = Average age of 27

Once again Houston takes this category with the youngest combined duo of the four.

1. Houston - Anderson Jr. and Hunter
2. Detroit - Hutchinson and Reader
3. Las Vegas - Crosby and Wilkins
4. Cleveland - Garrett and Smith

Nov 26, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (51) is blocked by Jacksonville Jaguars offensive tackle Anton Harrison (77) in the second half at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports / Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

After calculating all three categories, here is the average final standings for each group.

1 - Houston - Anderson Jr. and Hunter
2.33 - Las Vegas - Crosby and Wilkins
3.33 - Cleveland - Garrett and Smith
3.33 - Detroit - Hutchinson and Reader

Although Myles Garrett may be the most talented of all of the defensive linemen on this list and his duo with Za'Darius Smith is very strong, the Cleveland Browns defense is probably the most well-rounded of all four of these teams. In addition to lots of talent on the roster, Cleveland has the advantage of the reigning Assistant Coach of the Year with defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz running the scheme.

In addition to Garrett and Smith, you can't forget about Ogbo Okoronkwo, Alex Wright and the defensive tackles that make up an excellent rotation up front.

Dec 24, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Za'Darius Smith (99) attempts to tackle Houston Texans quarterback Case Keenum (18) during the game at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

As for any "best duo honors", that should go to the Houston Texans with Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter. They will likely wreak havoc in the backfield all season together and have the opportunity to likely do just that for many years to come.