Trent Williams Dishes Hall of Fame Praise to Myles Garrett
The much-anticipated and first ever battle between Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett and 49ers All-Pro tackle Trent Williams certainly appeared to live up the hype — even though Garrett was held without a sack in the Browns’ 19-17 win.
Williams prevented Garrett from taking down QB Brock Purdy, but Garrett still managed to apply some pressure, delivering one QB hit and two hurries.
To Williams, Garrett’s immense power and deep array of pass rush moves made it a tough challenge, and he acknowledged it with some of the highest praise a tackle can give his opponent.
“They’ve got a Hall of Fame rusher over there in 95,” Williams said, who mentioned Garrett when talking about why he fought through an ankle injury. “I wanted to get back out there so I could help my team try to contain him.”
Oct 15, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) is blocked by San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams (71) during the third quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
The ankle injury and overall effectiveness of the Browns’ elite defensive line was why Williams struggled to play to his usual standards — he allowed four total QB pressures and was given a 50.6 offensive grade from Pro Football Focus, which was his lowest-graded game since Week 17 of 2018.
“We played one of the better defenses in the league,” Williams said, according to 49ers Press Pass. “They did a good job with getting us behind the chains on early downs. Once you get behind against the pass rush they have up front, you’re playing into their hands.”
Williams is a perennial Hall of Famer who is still playing at an All-Pro level at 33 years old. The Browns, however, still found success against Williams and overall stout 49ers offensive line, sacking Brock Purdy three times and delivering six hits against him.
Garrett might not have been one of the players who registered a sack against him, but he still earned the praise from Williams.
“He’s one of the best in the world. We battled. It was tough. We’ve got a lot of respect for each other. He’s everything we thought he was going to be.”
