The Browns have plenty of players who match up well against the Bears but the trump card is edge rusher Myles Garrett, who had 4 1/2 sacks of Justin Fields in 2021.
Bears quarterback Justin Fields already played against Myles Garrett once so he has some idea how to approach a game against the Browns pass rusher.
“See what he does well—which is pretty much everything,” Fields said. “Just have a plan for him going into the game and execute that plan.”
Simple enough.
So what will it be, kryptonite or dynamite?
The plan will need to be a very good one because Garrett is graded second in the league among edge rushers by Pro Football Focus, just an eyelash behind Nick Bosa.
The problem with the 6-foot-4, 272-pound Garrett is you never know where the Browns will put him in the formation so it’s never easy to plan for him.
“I mean yeah you’ve got to know where,” Fields said. “He’s the best defensive player on the field so you’ve got to know where he is at all times, every play.”
Nicknamed Superman and Big Foot, no one is jerking around the 27-year-old pass rusher. Although, it does seem like someone might be using the dynamite or kryptonite on him. He has fallen off a bit as he has been stuck at 13 sacks for the past three games while others like Khalil Mack have moved past him.
A couple of injuries have helped to slow him down. Even though he’s resting and sitting out of practice, the Browns are optimistic he’ll play Sunday.
Even if Garrett moves around, the bulk of his plays are likely to come off the Bears offense’s right side against rookie Darnell Wright, who has been receiving a real education against top pass rushers of late.
Here’s who elses the Browns have who can cause matchup issues for the Bears.
CB Denzel Ward
Although his grading by Pro Football Focus has fallen off the last two years, Ward still rates the best Browns pass defender and one of the better players in the league when healthy. The 5-11, 190-pounder from Ohio State is in his sixth season and has two interceptions with 10 pass breakups this season. He is enjoying his best passer rating against when targeted for any season according to Sportradar at 54.6 and allows only 48.1% completions when targeted. He’s been inched since Nov. 19 but chances are good he’ll return this week and would face DJ Moore, provided Moore is healthy.
DE Za’Darius Smith
The Bears can’t seem to get away from Double-Z, even in another conference. He left Green Bay for Minnesota and now the Browns. The 6-foot-4, 275-pounder has just 3 1/2 sacks this year but his PFF grades say he’s still getting the job done with a 13th ranking in the league as a pass rusher, 27th overall among all edge rushers. He has 2 1/2 sacks, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble against the Bears and usually will line up on Braxton Jones’ side.
DE Za’Darius Smith
The Bears can’t seem to get away from Double-Z, even in another conference. He left Green Bay for Minnesota and now the Browns. The 6-foot-4, 275-pounder has just 3 1/2 sacks this year but his PFF grades say he’s still getting the job done with a 13th ranking in the league as a pass rusher, 27th overall among all edge rushers. He has 2 1/2 sacks, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble against the Bears and usually will line up on Braxton Jones’ side.
WR Amari Cooper
The former Cowboys and Raiders receiver is 124 yards short of 1,000 but has his yards-per-catch all the way up at a career high of 15.4 despite a poor quarterback situation all year caused by injuries to Deshaun Watson. He has 57 catches in 105 targets and is the deep threat Joe Flacco will look to first, the player Jaylon Johnson likely will wind up with in coverage. Cooper just tied his season’s best for receptions (7) last week.
WR Amari Cooper
The former Cowboys and Raiders receiver is 124 yards short of 1,000 but has his yards-per-catch all the way up at a career high of 15.4 despite a poor quarterback situation all year caused by injuries to Deshaun Watson. He has 57 catches in 105 targets and is the deep threat Joe Flacco will look to first, the player Jaylon Johnson likely will wind up with in coverage. Cooper just tied his season’s best for receptions (7) last week.
C Ethan Pocic
The former Seahawks center ow has had two good years with the Browns. In fact, he’s had his two best seasons. He’s 10th graded by Pro Football Focus among centers, eighth in pass blocking and 11th in run blocking. At 6-foot-6, 320, he’s one of the league’s bigger centers and has allowed just one sack with four penalties this year.
LG Joel Bitonio
He’ll give Justin Jones something to think about. Bitonio, 6-4, 320, has allowed 26 pressures, two sacks and committed four penalties. PFF grades him 24th among all guards. He has the quickness to pull and to block the wide zone with sub-5.0 speed in the 40. The Browns have been solid guard to guard this season but it’s the tackles where they have problems.
K Dustin Hopkins
The Browns have points on the board if they get to the opponents’ 38-to-40 because Hopkins is having the kind of year all kickers dream about. He is 8-for-8 from 50 yards or longer and leads the NFL in field goals (31) and attempts (34). At 91.2% he’s among the league’s best.
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