Mike Tomlin faced a pointed question after the loss to the Cleveland Browns about whether the Pittsburgh Steelers were trying to “block” Myles Garrett to prevent him from reaching a dangerous sack milestone, as he is just one sack away from breaking the record. The head coach admitted there was never any such intention, even though Garrett said he felt that was the case during the game.
Tomlin was brief and direct in his response. “We didn’t take a different approach,” he told reporters, making it clear the Steelers did not design a special strategy to stop Garrett, who finished the game with one tackle and a quarterback hit on Aaron Rodgers.
Garrett was disruptive throughout the game, not only against Rodgers but also against the Steelers’ offensive line. Still, Tomlin said the Browns star’s record was not a factor in the game plan. “We didn’t do anything against Myles that we don’t normally do against Myles. The sack record is irrelevant,” the coach said.
Tomlin says there was no different strategy against Garrett
The approach was the same as always, according to Tomlin, who explained that when facing the Browns, Garrett must be accounted for like any other time they play him. He also pointed out that Garrett did not record a sack in their previous matchup either.
“We gotta minimize him if we want to engineer a victory. We did the same thing last time we played them. I don’t think he had any sacks in that game, either. So we didn’t take a different approach because of the gravity of the record. It’s just standard business when you’re playing these guys and him.”
After the game against the Steelers, Garrett delivered a pointed message criticizing the strategy Pittsburgh used against him, blaming Tomlin for the Steelers’ loss to the Browns.