Browns' Myles Garrett: Frustrated Until Victory

Myles Garrett's Frustration and Reflections on the Browns' Struggles

Berea — Myles Garrett witnessed the same Joe Flacco that everyone else saw during the October 16 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers. For Garrett, it was a familiar sight.

"I think Joe looked like Joe," Garrett said on October 17. "Happy that he went out there and got a win. He played how we know he can and he made plays when they needed him to. Got the ball out quick, put it on the money down the field. He looked great."

The 40-year-old quarterback delivered a strong performance, throwing for 342 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-31 victory for the Bengals. This was his second start with the team after being acquired from the Browns in exchange for a 2026 fifth-round pick.

The Bengals made sure to highlight this trade, as the crowd chanted "Thank you, Cleveland" during the Amazon Prime postgame show. However, the sentiment wasn't shared by the fans from the northern end of Interstate 71, who were frustrated by the Flacco they remembered from the 2023 season, not the ineffective one from the 2025 season.

"That ain't got nothing to do with me," Garrett said. "Whether they're on the offensive side of the ball or where he is at now, it's got nothing to do with us."

The Browns traded Flacco away a week after benching him in favor of rookie third-round pick Dillon Gabriel. This move came ahead of a Week 6 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite the change, the offense hasn't seen any significant improvement, scoring no more than 17 points in a game since December 2024.

The Frustrations of a Losing Season

The 23-9 loss to the Steelers led Garrett to express his frustrations, following the same pattern as the team's other four losses. The defensive effort was strong, but the offensive performance was forgettable.

Flacco's performance less than two weeks after his final appearance as the Browns' starting quarterback only added to the frustration among fans. It continued the same pattern of losses that Garrett has faced in Pittsburgh, London, Detroit, and elsewhere.

"Well, hell, we frustrated, too," Garrett said. "It's not like they can be any more frustrated than the people who are out there putting their body on the line and not winning. They wear the colors, they come and support us and we'll be forever grateful. But you can never be more frustrated than someone who's actually in that ring or on that field, and hoping that they continue to support us and we're going to continue to put our bodies on the line and give everything until we can find a way to start winning and winning in succession. But, man, it's tough. It's tough for everybody."

Garrett's frustrations aren't limited to the offense or the losing. The loss to the Steelers marked the third consecutive game in which he didn't record a sack. The Steelers used various tactics to keep him away from quarterback Aaron Rodgers, including rolling him away and getting the ball out quickly.

Some fans pushed back against Garrett's postgame comments, but he wasn't willing to take them seriously.

"No, I don't consider myself with the comments of people who don't play or don't watch the game enough to understand what's going on or what they do to try to stop or neutralize me," Garrett said. "Stuff like that doesn't really cross my radar at the end of the day. Offenses' sole game plan for the most part is how to stop 95, and we have to do something to change that, make adjustments to get me matchups just like other edge rushers around the league so that I can have the same kind of effect. I feel like I'm that kind of player."

A New Opportunity for the Browns

The Browns are set to return home on October 19 for their first game in a month. Facing a similar 1-5 Miami Dolphins team could be their best chance to secure a win since the start of the season.

A victory over the Dolphins would provide a much-needed boost in morale for both Garrett and the team. However, it wouldn't change the overall feeling for Garrett, as the team remains at 2-5 instead of 1-6.

"I don't know what getting my mind right is right now," Garrett said. "S---, I'm frustrated. I’m not going to stop being frustrated until we win and continue winning. One win is not going to be enough, so we got to figure out what's the recipe for us to be successful and excessively so on every side of the ball and we got to get better in general. We got to take more chances."

Garrett emphasized that he has "no say-so in what happens on the offense side." He focuses on what he can control: the defense and how it can improve.

Despite the challenges, Garrett pointed out a positive aspect of the team. "The guys who are over there and especially the young guys who are hungry and ready to go and want to make plays and who are urgent. That makes me hopeful."

Although Garrett has no influence on the offensive side, he expressed a desire for the Browns to run the ball more against the Steelers. The team ran just 17 times for 65 yards, with rookie running back Quinshon Judkins rushing 12 times for 36 yards while throwing it 52 times.

"I would've liked to see us stick to the run a little bit, especially with a dynamic playmaker like Quinshon," Garrett said. "Hell, even Dylan [Sampson], and both of them getting the ball and both of them have different styles but effective runners in their own right. So would've liked to see it, but they saw differently."