Cleveland defensive end is the NFL’s best player heading into 2025, according to PFF.
The Cleveland Browns will officially open training camp next week when the veterans report to team headquarters in Berea.
Over the next weeks, the Browns will look to answer numerous questions before the 2025 season opens on September 7 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
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Among those are:
- Who will be the odd-man out in the four-way quarterback battle between Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders?
- Can rookie Dylan Sampson give a boost to the running game, and when will fellow rookie Quinshon Judkins join him?
- Will the offensive line stay healthy and rebound to its former high level of play?
- Who among the wide receivers will join Jerry Jeudy in being a reliable option?
- How will the defense adapt to the loss of linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and can rookie Carson Schwesinger fill in the gap?
- What is going to happen in the secondary, where the only reliable player at the moment may be cornerback Denzel Ward?
One area the Browns have no concern about is with defensive end Myles Garrett, unquestionably the league’s best defensive player.
Now entering his ninth season after being the No. 1 overall selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, Garrett has been building a Hall of Fame résumé from the moment he walked onto the field.
Garrett is the first player to have at least 14 sacks in a season for four consecutive years, as well as the first player to record 100 sacks before the age of 29. He is also the fifth player since 1982 to have at least 100 sacks in his first eight seasons, tying Hall of Famers Bruce Smith and Lawrence Taylor as the fourth-fastest players to reach 100 sacks.
That production led The Associated Press to select Garrett as the game’s top edge rusher in a vote of eight AP pro football writers:
Garrett has been a dominant presence for Cleveland’s defense over his first eight seasons. He became the youngest player in NFL history to reach 100 sacks last season when he finished with 14.
Garrett finished third in voting for Defensive Player of the Year, earned his fourth All-Pro spot and sixth Pro Bowl trip.
The Browns made him the highest-paid edge rusher in NFL history, giving him a $160 million, four-year deal.
And while it is widely accepted that Garrett is the best defensive player, Pro Football Focus took it one step further by selecting Garrett as the league’s best player period:
Garrett remains the brightest star in Cleveland and the NFL’s most dominant defensive player. He’s posted a PFF grade of 92.0 or higher in each of the past four seasons, including a league-leading 92.3 in 2024. Still only 29, Garrett is already building a Hall of Fame resumé with a level of dominance and consistency few players in the past half-decade can match.
So, while the Browns have plenty to worry about in the coming weeks, their confidence in Garrett remains a reassuring constant as they work toward the NFL regular season.
But at least there is one position they never have to worry about as long as Garrett is on the roster.