Browns player earned Week 1’s highest PFF grade thrashing Baker Mayfield

To add insult to injury, Myles Garrett earned a 94.4 PFF grade — the highest in Week 1 — for bringing down Carolina Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield. 

It’s a highlight reel for the ages — or for Week 1, at least.

https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1570191916469215233?s=20&t=32SaH–CB3GDWNw8rha9eQ

Here are the highest-graded PFF players in Week 1 on full display, captured in all their glory. Chiefs cornerback L’Jarius Sneed earned a 90.0, partially for bringing down Kyler Murray on a beautiful blitz. Even though New England lost at the hands of Tua Tagovailoa, Patriots defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. ripped the ball out of his hands — Wise got a 90.2 for that.

Three minutes of impeccable play from the league’s highest-graded players, the ones who outperformed beyond expectation.

And according to PFF analytics, no one did better than Browns defensive end Myles Garrett.

Garrett earned a 94.4 grade for sending Panthers quarterback into another dimension during their Week 1 matchup, one that was touted to be a revenge game for Mayfield.

Instead, Garrett attacked Mayfield with a vengeance, recording two sacks, one forced fumble, three tackles for a loss, two quarterback hits, one pass defended and four solo tackles.

Garrett had quite a day on Sunday, leading the Browns to a win in a 26-24 game.

Myles Garrett PFF grade quantifies how much he destroyed Baker Mayfield, Panthers

Considering the dramatic highs and lows seen on the field, the tensions that arise in the locker room tend to fester and fuel revenge games. Za’Darius Smith did not like how the Packers treated him. Baker Mayfield made it clear he didn’t like how things went down with the Browns.

So when Myles Garrett caught wind that Mayfield reportedly vowed to “f*** them up” in Week 1, he had the following to say:

https://twitter.com/FanSided/status/1564762065796866048?s=20&t=vr_8_Lowb3zjz-vTbfCsQA

Mayfield later said he never said the original statement, but the fuse was already lit.

Dislike aside, Garrett has been dominant at the position since he was selected No. 1 overall by the Browns in 2017 (ironically, Mayfield was picked No. 1 in 2018).

Here’s some context on Garrett’s game, per lead PFF NFL analyst Sam Monson:

"“Very little separates Garrett from T.J. Watt as the best edge rusher currently in the NFL. Over the past two seasons, Garrett has the best pass-rush win rate (22.6%) among edge rushers, narrowly ahead of Watt. He also leads the league in pass-rush wins that never developed into pressure because the quarterback got rid of the ball beforehand.”"

With T.J. Watt out for the next six weeks with a pec injury, this year could be Garrett’s year to top edge rusher rankings.

Still, he may never reclaim the edge he felt in Week 1 facing his former teammate in Mayfield.