Garrett said to be a really nice guy
From the notebook of a sportswriter who wonders how the Browns are going to win any games without Myles Garrett:
n Listening to Cleveland-area reporters telling me Garrett鈥檚 such a nice guy, and that he treats his dog so well, it reminded me of reporters interviewing neighbors of mass murderers.
n Yes, a bit much, but, honestly, Mason Rudolph could鈥檝e been killed out there.
n 鈥淗e was SUCH a nice, quiet guy who never bothered anyone. And what a lovely dog!鈥�
n I鈥檝e written in this space that the Browns, with all of their hype coming into this season, wouldn鈥檛 know how to handle success. But I never imagined they would be THAT stupid.
n At the end of a game they had it locked up, that鈥檚 what鈥檚 so odd. I had been thinking the Browns wouldn鈥檛 handle being favorites, playing prime-time games and dealing with the week-in, week-out pressure that comes with being successful like, well, the Steelers, who鈥檝e developed bona fide organizational class these last 50 years.
n I actually thought the Steelers would come back and win Thursday鈥檚 game. Yes, they were dreadful, and games like that happen with young quarterbacks, but I thought the Browns would go into a run-only shell 鈥� for which their fans had been clamoring in the first half with the marvelous Nick Chubb. But in the second half, the Steelers could play their 3-4 Okie base (and their new 4-DT front) and stuff the run, sack Baker Mayfield on third down, get the ball back, and just cause the Browns to choke.
n It almost happened. I could smell it at 14-7. And 鈥� it did not happen.
n No playmakers. That鈥檚 the easy and obvious excuse. JuJu Smith-Schuster鈥檚 been struggling with a toe problem all season and then left with a concussion. And, of course, the Steelers lost James Conner and Diontae Johnson.
n Maybe playing four games in 18 days 鈥� something they鈥檝e only done two other times in franchise history 鈥� wasn鈥檛 such a smart scheduling move by the league.
n Of course, the concussions don鈥檛 fall under those short-week issues, but the struggles of the offensive line very well may have been due to beat up-bodies.
n That really didn鈥檛 look like the Steelers O-line out there in Cleveland. And, frankly, the three-game suspension of Maurkice Pouncey is too long.
n But, he just shouldn鈥檛 have kicked. He didn鈥檛 land anything harmful, but it was a horrible look.
n Rudolph, upon review, didn鈥檛 play as poorly as the heavy criticism warrants. I鈥檓 certainly not going to write him off, as seemingly much of the nation did on social media.
n His arm鈥檚 strong enough, he鈥檚 mobile enough, shows good instincts moving around the pocket (should鈥檝e been sacked more than four times), and is a natural-born leader, as tough and focused and driven and studious and smart as they come, too.
n But go ahead and rip him. Rip away. That鈥檚 what our town does. And he gets it. He鈥檒l be OK.
n Now, on the flip side, the clamor before the game to cut Ben Roethlisberger, save a pile of money, extend about three defensive contracts, and hand Rudolph the keys for good, that clamor should, and no doubt will, die down.
n I鈥檓 smack dab in the middle. I believe Rudolph will mature into a quality NFL quarterback, but I also believe Roethlisberger should and will return to drive the Steelers offense. That鈥檚 now a moot point as the four-game win streak comes to a halt.
n The Minkah Fitzpatrick buzz will also die down through this mini-bye. In all of the hubbub about the criminal act, I forgot to ask about football and what happened on that first touchdown. It looked like the Steelers were in cover-zero without anyone over the top of Odell Beckham.
n And, of course, Minkah wasn鈥檛 able to come to the rescue down the stretch as he had in previous wins.
n One of the stars for the Browns was their free safety, Morgan Burnett. He broke up an accurate deep pass to Johnny Holton, tackled Trey Edmunds for a loss on third-and-1, and intercepted the tipped flea-flicker pass the Steelers no doubt installed to beat him deep. All in the first half.
n It had to be sweet justice for Burnett, who signed with the Steelers in 2018 with the intention of playing deep safety, but was instead used as a dime linebacker.
n And then Burnett got injured. He was helped off the field. Since it was a non-contact injury, I felt as if I was watching him for the last time. He鈥檚 always been a good guy, and his 鈥渨in鈥� in this battle of free safeties was deserved.
n He was probably the last vestige of orange-and-brown class on the field, because it didn鈥檛 look like there was any of it during the late-game melee.
n Ah, I鈥檒l begrudgingly show respect for Joe Schobert. He was T.J. Watt鈥檚 mentor at Wisconsin, and even wore his Wisconsin sweatshirt to the podium for his post-game interview.
n Schobert had 10 tackles and two interceptions, but he was no doubt chosen to speak for the Browns because of his integrity. Here鈥檚 what he said about the Garrett incident: 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 say it feels like we lost, but obviously it feels like there are some things that are bigger than football that need to be addressed or needed to be addressed in the locker room after the game. It kind of tones down the enthusiasm of getting a win, a big-time win over a divisional opponent.鈥�
n Garrett will probably miss the rest of the season for his attempted murder. He鈥檚 the greatest threat on the defensive side of the field for the Browns and will be missed greatly. Throw in the fact the Steelers will be better rested and no doubt rejuvenated mentally in two weeks should help them greatly in the rematch.
n I expect the Steelers鈥� quest for revenge will succeed with an assassin鈥檚 precision 鈥� coolly, calmly, calculatingly and correctly.
n And then we can talk to the Browns鈥� next-door neighbors about how well the Steelers treat their dogs.