FOXBOROUGH - There are few defensive players in the league as disruptive as Cleveland's Myles Garrett. Consistently trying to block him with one player is foolish, but even a steady mix of double teams, chips, or an extra set of eyes and possibly hands waiting for the 29-year-old doesn't mean you've got the problem solved.
"He does some stuff that a lot of people can't do," Will Campbell said. "He's a great player."
"He's somebody you’ve got to know where he's at," added Drake Maye. "A lot of credit to him. He plays hard, he's disruptive, and he's good in the run game and the pass game. It's going to be a tough challenge.
Campbell will see plenty of Garrett as they get up close and personal on Sunday at Gillette. But Garrett isn't always where you expect him to be. At least, that's how coordinator Jim Schwartz deployed him this past weekend against Miami. The four-time 1st team All-Pro played a handful of snaps directly over the tackle instead of lining up wide. Considering the Patriots play a rookie at left guard (Jared Wilson), in addition to left tackle, it wouldn't be surprising if the game's best edge rusher ended up getting some reps over one or both of the guards, and maybe even center Garrett Bradbury. That's something Schwartz did with Garrett last year, but through the first seven weeks, he hadn't gone back to.
"Not knowing where to expect me, that scares the hell out of an offensive coordinator," Garrett said after the Browns powerslammed the Dolphins, forcing Tua Tagovailoa to the bench in favor of rookie Quinn Ewers.
For the season, Garrett has 26 total pressures (5 sacks, 4 QB hits, 17 hurries). That's only the 12th best in the league (Detroit's Aidan Hutchinson has 48!), but that Browns defense will be the best unit the Patriots offense has seen to this point, and maybe for the entirety of the regular season.
"They're fast, they're disruptive," Mike Vrabel said. "They put pressure on the quarterback, and they do it through their players and their identity. They understand what they want to do and how they want to play. They want to force you into mistakes if you give up loose plays, or guys get on the edge of somebody. You’ve got an elite edge rusher on the outside, and if you can't step up, it's going to be hard to protect.
"And then the corners are going to be sticky, the linebackers all can run, (the) safeties are very good tacklers. And that's the thing that I've noticed, is that if a ball breaks, eight yards is a really long run against this team because the safeties are such good tacklers – Grant (Delpit) and Ronnie (Hickman)."
The Browns are 5th in EPA per play and total EPA, are second only to Denver in success rate, and 1st in EPA per rush. They have done a great job of making opposing offenses one-dimensional, and while the Pats have managed to win a couple of these games without even a semblance of a running game, they haven't done it against a unit of this caliber.
"They've got a lot of good players across the front," Campbell added, "and the backers are playing well...we've got to be ready to go on Sunday."
Campbell has had the spotlight on him even before the Patriots drafted him number four overall. The debate about his less-than-ideal arm length, wingspan, and hand size for a left tackle still bubbles up weekly, and this one is no different, especially with him likely getting an up-close-and-personal look at Garrett for a majority of the plays. For the most part, Campbell has held up well. Has he shown people that he can translate his collegiate success to the pros?
"I mean, if you want me to be completely honest with you, I was never trying to prove them right," he said. "I know that I was chosen here for a reason, so it was never really about proving anybody who said that my arms were too small wrong. It was just coming here to try to help his team. And I just want to keep continuing to do that each and every week in any way that I can. But I'm really not worried about what anybody else has to say."
Campbell has received strong support from the coaching staff, particularly from Josh McDaniels, who has done a nice job of mixing protections to aid both tackles and teammates. The fan base has also been quite vociferous in their defense of the rookie tackle, although there was that one guy who really seized upon a comparison that came up quite often pre-draft between Campbell and an extinct predator.
"Someone sent in the mail a T. Rex. I don't know where it is, but a plastic T. Rex to my locker. I thought it was funny, but yeah, I mean, I never really cared. It wasn't relevant or (would) help me in any way possible to help me do what I'm going to do," he said, adding he "laughed" and "read the return address" of the person who sent it to him.
That's the perfect response from a young player who has solidified a position that had been a black hole for several seasons. Not a bad way to begin a career, while also knowing that his growth has only just begun.
