The Cleveland Browns just traded the most dominant pass rusher in franchise history, and the question that every fan is asking right now is a simple one. How does this defense replace what Myles Garrett brought to the field every single Sunday?
Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot addressed that challenge and the difficulty ahead about what this defense can still accomplish without number 95.
“Now, other guys are going to have to pick up the slack. Your interior guys might have more opportunities to get more sacks. The other edge rushers like Alex Wright and Isaiah McGuire, those guys are going to have to step it up. Then you’re going to have to do some other things with more blitzing with your linebackers, try some different things that way. You’re going to have to come up with sacks and pressures in more creative ways. You need to play really, really good team defense and you need to get those pressures. I don’t think it’s the end of the world for the Cleveland Browns,” Cabot said.
When Garrett was on the field, opposing offensive coordinators dedicated enormous resources to accounting for him on every single snap. Double teams, chip blocks, slide protections, all of it was designed around taking the best player off the board before the ball was even snapped. That obsession with Garrett created natural opportunities for players like the interior defensive linemen to win one on one matchups that they would not otherwise get. With Garrett gone, those same double teams and extra attention are going to be redistributed, which could actually free up the interior rush in ways that have not been seen in recent years.
Alex Wright has flashed genuine pass rush ability during his time in Cleveland but has never been asked to be a featured player because Garrett occupied all of the attention. Isaiah McGuire is a young edge rusher with upside who now has the opportunity to define his role on this defense in a meaningful way. Neither player is Garrett, and neither should be expected to replace him individually. But both can take significant steps forward in a new defensive structure that asks more of them than it ever has before.
Jared Verse arriving as part of the trade package gives Cleveland a legitimate foundation to build the pass rush around going forward. But 2026 is going to require every player on this defense to contribute in ways they have not been asked to before.
NEXT: What Rams Thought Of Jared Verse Should Make Every Browns Fan Feel Better
