Rams star Myles Garrett said a lingering knee issue contributed to his debut dud Down Under on Thursday night.
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year had zero tackles in the 27-7 loss to the 49ers in Melbourne, Australia.
Garrett, 30, called his first game in a Los Angeles uniform the “worst version of myself that I’ve put out there.”
“I’ve got to be better,” Garrett said. “I’ve got to find a way to recover and get back to the player I know I can be and I’ve shown that I’ve been before.”
Rams coach Sean McVay characterized Garrett’s injury as swelling in his knee. The seven-time Pro Bowl pass rusher missed most of training camp and wore a sleeve on his left leg at several practices.
“When I was out there, I was a little bit more focused on myself and trying to stay healthy than what they were doing, and that showed,” Garrett said. “I wasn’t who I needed to be for my team.”
After breaking the NFL single-season record with 23 sacks last season for Cleveland, Garrett was traded to the Rams on June 1 in exchange for outside linebacker Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round selection and a 2029 third-rounder.
Garrett’s performance against the NFC West rival Niners marked his first game without a tackle since Week 11 of the 2024 season.
“When I was out there, I was a little bit more focused on myself and trying to stay healthy than what they were doing, and that showed,” Garrett said. “I wasn’t who I needed to be for my team.”
Garrett said his focus heading into Week 2 will be “getting healthy.” The Rams could also see the return of three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald when they host the New York Giants on “Monday Night Football” on Sept. 21.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Garrett has recorded 125.5 sacks and 239 quarterback hits in 135 career games (132 starts) with the Browns (2017-25) and Rams.
–Field Level Media
