The Cleveland Browns have had to rely on their defense more than they’d like this season given how poorly the offense has performed, and if the team is to avoid falling to 1-5 on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles, Myles Garrett and his crew are going to have to carry a heavy load once again.
Star running back Saquon Barkley presents a tough challenge for a defense that has surrendered 141.6 rushing yards per game through Week 5, and Garrett himself recently revealed his thoughts on what it’s going to take to slow down Barkley and this offense.
While speaking with reporters on Friday, Garrett had high praise for the Eagles’ star RB, saying “He works his a** off. That didn’t happen overnight. He wasn’t born like that…He put in that time to look how he does, perform how he does, play how he does. He’s back to getting healthy and back to his game-changing ways. It definitely puts more stress and more focus on stopping the run when you have somebody like that in the backfield.”
#Browns Myles Garrett raves about #Eagles RB Saquon Barkley. pic.twitter.com/0eC30n8O1f
— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) October 11, 2024
Garrett also stressed the importance of stopping the run early to prevent Barkley from setting the tone and getting his offense in a groove that would be tough to overcome.
Barkley looks rejuvenated in a new offense and is averaging 6.0 yards per carry so far with 435 yards and four touchdowns through four games.
His Eagles are 2-2 and well-rested coming off a bye week, so this Browns defense has its work cut out for them on Sunday.
Of course, it would help immensely if the offense could score at least 20 points for once.
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