Robert Saleh made it abundantly clear that he’s massively impressed with Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns. So much so that the New York Jets coach suggested there could be some divine intervention that took place with the stud edge rusher.
“The good Lord was on his A Game when he built Myles,” Saleh said Friday.
Saleh is the former defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. And he absolutely loves big-time defensive players. Clearly that’s the case with Garrett.
“He doesn’t have a flaw to his game,” Saleh gushed. “He’s big, he’s got everything and when he turns it on, he’s impossible to block.”
Myles Garrett is unbelievable pic.twitter.com/jnm2wfTjH2
— JP Acosta (@acosta32_jp) September 13, 2022
Of course, the Jets are going to try and contradict their coach this week by finding a way to block and shut down Garrett when they visit the Browns on Sunday. But they better do a better of job against Garrett and the Cleveland pass rush than they did last week in a 24-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
The Jets allowed 22 QB pressures and Joe Flacco was sacked three times by the Ravens. Because he was under duress throughout, Flacco attempted only one pass of 20+ yards and averaged only 5.2 yards per attempt. Needless to say that was not a winning formula.
When the #Jets kept Joe Flacco "clean," per PFF, he was 32 of 40 for 266 yards with a TD and INT (Cager fell down).
Much worse under pressure: 5 of 19 for 43 yards.
The #Ravens blitzed Flacco on 17 of his drop backs.
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) September 12, 2022
Much of the pressure came on simple four-man pass rushes. That didn’t sit well with Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur.
“That’s gotta’ be fixed and that’s gotta’ be fixed right now,” LaFleur said Thursday.
Garrett had two sacks, six pressures and forced a fumble in a 26-24 Week 1 win against the Carolina Panthers. Pro Football Focus gave him an incredible 94.4 overall grade. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft had a career-high 16 sacks last season and 60.5 sacks in 69 NFL games.
“They have a very sound scheme and on top of that, they have very good players,” LaFleur said. “Myles Garrett is an absolute problem, he’s a man on a mission. You could see it last week. You could see it last year.”
While Garrett wreaks havoc on the right side of the Browns defense, Jadeveon Clowney does likewise on the left. Clowney, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 draft by the Houston Texans, had a half sack, two pressures, two passes defended and a 76.3 PFF grade in the opener.
Having Clowney on the other side “makes it even worse” for the Jets, Saleh said with a nervous laugh.
“Against this defense, you better earn it because they’re really not going to give you anything,” LaFleur added.
It’s going to be tough sledding for the Jets offensive line, which is still building chemistry after injuries to tackles Mekhi Becton and Duane Brown. George Fant has moved from left tackle to right, and then back again shortly before the Ravens game. Rookie fourth-round pick Max Mitchell is starting at right tackle. And Laken Tomlinson, the Pro Bowl guard, had a miserable performance in Week 1, finishing with a 39.5 pass-blocking grade per PFF.
Now they must come together and find a way to keep Garrett off Flacco. That might require real divine intervention.
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