Myles Garrett is easily the best rookie edge defender, per PFF

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett continues to show why he was the No. 1 overall selection in the 2017 NFL Draft.

The Cleveland Browns have set the standard for missing on draft picks through the years, especially in the first round of the NFL Draft.

Consider that the Browns selected eight players in the first round from 2011 through 2015 and only one — defensive tackle Danny Shelton — remains on the team.

That trend has started to reverse itself the past two years, however, and paid off in a big way in 2017 when the team made defensive end Myles Garrett the No. 1 overall selection.

Related: Myles Garrett picks up a rookie honor

There are those who continue to deride the pick because it was a “no brainer,” as well as people who inexplicably try to downplay Garrett’s impact on the field, but given Cleveland’s history there is no such thing as a “no brainer” when draft weekend rolls around.

As for those who think that Garrett had no impact, they are not going to like the fact that Pro Football Focus graded Garrett as the best rookie edge defender in 2017:

Garrett was sidelined the first four games of the season dues to a high-ankle spring, but once he hit the field he was hard to miss. He made an immediate impact in his debut in Week 5 against the New York Jets, sacking quarterback Josh McCown on his first play from scrimmage.

More from Dawg Pound Daily

• How the Browns could maximize Nick Chubb in 2023
• Can Deshaun Watson get to Patrick Mahomes level for Cleveland Browns?
• 3 Cleveland Browns who should see an expanded role in 2023 and 1 who should not
• Is Marcus Davenport on the Browns radar in 2023?
• 5 Free agents from Super Bowl LVII Cleveland Browns should target

In addition to the four games lost to the ankle sprain, Garrett would miss a game in the middle of the season while in concussion protocol. He still finished the year with seven sacks in just 11 games — despite facing constant double (and sometimes triple) teams and seeing opposing offenses continually run away from him.

Those seven sacks led the team, were second-best among all NFL rookies, and was the third highest sack total by a rookie in franchise history.

Even though they only spent a short time together because of injuries, Garrett and second-year defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah were productive together and gave opposing quarterbacks a look at dark times ahead when the face the Browns.

The PFF honor is just the latest recognition that Garrett has picked up, as he was also named to the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team in January. Garrett was the first Browns rookie to make the team since guard Joel Bitonio in 2014.

Next: Kirk Cousins bidding war starts early

The only negative about the Pro Football Focus grading is that the players who came in second and third – Carl Lawson of the Cincinnati Bengals and T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers – also play in the AFC North Division, which means the Browns need to stay focused on protecting their quarterback in the coming years.