CLEVELAND, Ohio – Myles Garrett plans to prove that the Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster was wrong on Sunday night.
At his Zoom conference on Wednesday, Smith-Schuster was asked if there is a new and improved vibe about the Browns, who finished 11-5 this season and shared the series with the Steelers to secure their first playoff spot in 18 years. .
“” Nah, I think they are still the same Browns that I played every year, “said Smith-Schuster. “I think they are gray faces with no name. They have some good players on their team. But at the end of the day … the Browns are the Browns. It’s AFC North football. They are a good team. I am happy that we are playing with them again. “
When Garrett was first asked about Smith-Schuster’s comments, he said “no comment”.
But asked if the Browns proved that they are not the same Browns as always, the defensive side said, “We will have to prove it when we see them on Sunday.”
Garrett said the Browns are not suffering at all, despite the fact that they lack their head coach, Kevin Stefanski, and several other important players because of COVID-19, including left guard Joel Bitonio, his oldest player.
“As Stefanski always told us, you are not up to the occasion; you fall to the level of your preparation, ” he said. “The way we prepare and prepare ourselves mentally, whether through Zoom or just working with him physically preparing at home on his own, is just how you treat yourself and how you prepare like a professional.
“No one is going to sit here and say that we are telling ourselves. These guys are hungry, and we’re going to take them. “
He said the mindset is the same as in all other games this season, despite not training on Wednesday and Thursday and despite eight players and five coaches still out with COVID-19.
“Just win,” he said. “You cannot have any other mentality. Anyone can be defeated. It doesn’t matter who you have. You get paid to be an artist, no matter where you sit on the depth chart – first or third. You get paid because you are one of the best in the world at your job and you need to introduce yourself and show it. “
Garrett invaded the NFL in 2017 promising to “topple” Ben Roethlisberger, and it is only fair that his first career playoff game is against Big Ben in Pittsburgh, where the Browns have not won since 2003. Roethlisberger also has 23-2-1 against Browns.
“It’s a big challenge,” said Garrett. “This is what we were all looking forward to and I know I am looking forward to it. The Steelers and Browns have a history against each other, so now it’s up to us to take responsibility. They have to come and play like us. Nothing is being taken for granted and nothing is going to be given to them. Anything we get, we’ll have to get it. “
Garrett, who struggled with the side effects of COVID-19 in the last five games of the season after losing two games, believes fans will see the fierce version of himself, which destroyed the NFL in the first nine games of the season, making the game – changing bags and strips weekly.
“Today, in training, I felt really good,” he said. “I felt like I was flying around and moving well, and you can see on Sunday that I look the same as I did at the beginning of the season.”
After losing the postseason in his first three seasons and being suspended for the last six games of last season, Garrett can’t wait for the big night.
“It will be a little exciting,” he said. “It will be different from any other playoff game obviously because there are not many fans. It will be a burden to get off my shoulders to finally get here. I will play as if it were the last. It may be the last chance I have. I’m not saying it will be because of our success, but you never know what’s coming.
“You never know what can happen in the world or with us individually or with our family. I’m going to play like my hair is on fire and like I never get another chance. “
Garrett was kept sackless at the end of the season against QB Mason Rudolph backup, but had an apparent strip considered an incomplete pass. He also seemed a little out of breath at times, despite playing 78% of the snaps.
“Going back to watching movies, they did some things differently, ” said Garrett. “They were confusing some looks on the offensive line, I think to delay me a little and try to unbalance myself, be it things with tight ends or back. It was a combination of looks. You work with it, especially after putting them back to back. It’s good to have another chance with them. “
Garrett is confident that he and the other Browns stars will stand out in the game.
“Great players make that kind of play on that stage, ” he said. “I feel that we have a lot of important players that have shown themselves throughout the season. I have no doubt that they will do so in this game. They will appear and fly across the field making those moves that I know they can make ”.
He hopes that one of those big name players in cornerback Denzel Ward will be back in the game. He tested positive for COVID-19 last week before the end of the season, but has a chance to return this game.
“He’s a great player,” said Garrett. “The guys don’t like to play towards him, and he plays by running to his side or playing to his side. He is a threat at any time. I am happy to see him back if we get them back and hoping he will feel good and prepared to be out on the field and answer the bell when he is there. “
Garrett likes to be named a first team All-Pro for the first time in his career, but individual praise is not on his mind right now.
“We have bigger things ahead of us, ” he said. “I couldn’t have done it without the guys on the line with me and the seven behind me. I hope that we can continue to succeed together, because that is the only way that this is possible. “
Smith-Schuster’s comments will undoubtedly help the Browns put their faces in the game, but it is nothing they have never heard of before.
“We’ve been in this role all year, ” he said. “We have been in this role since I am here. Nothing changed. Our backs are against the wall, and we are going to fight and fight against it ”.
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