5 Bold Cleveland Browns predictions for Week 2 against Jets

1. Myles Garrett crushes sack record

The NFL didn’t count sacks as an official record until the 1982 season, which seems strange. Such an important play that can change a game was just counted as a regular tackle, but nowadays, it’s one of the most utilized stats when trying to justify a defensive end’s worth.

Having said that, Pro Football Reference went back and tallied up sacks as far back as 1960. One thing this did was add to Clay Matthews’ total, taking him from 62 to 75. Another result was Bill Glass passing him for first in team history with 77.5 sacks.

Even with that being the case, the official leader in team history is still Matthews with 62. Right behind him is Myles Garrett who recorded two sacks on Sunday to push his career total to 60.5. He took advantage of a rookie left tackle as he was shoving Ikem Ekwonu around and could have had an even bigger day if Baker Mayfield didn’t start getting the ball out as quickly as he did late in the game.

In Week 2, Garrett will again find some favorable matchups on the New York line. With Mekhi Becton and Duane Brown both on the IR, George Fant is expected to start at left tackle, and rookie fourth-round pick Max Mitchell will be on the right. Garrett has moved around in the past to find the player he can take advantage of most, and that could end up being Mitchell this time.

With that being the case, this final bold prediction is that he doesn’t just get 1.5 sacks to tie Matthews’ official number, but cruises past it with at least three sacks.

At just 26 years of age, Garrett is still in his prime and before long, he will also pass the unofficial leaders, leaving no doubt about his place in team history.