Mike Tomlin Insists Steelers Weren't Playing to Halt Myles Garrett's Sack Record Chase

Pittsburgh lost to Cleveland on Sunday, which means they must beat the Ravens in Week 18 to make the playoffs.

The Steelers lost 13–6 on Sunday. / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

The Steelers did not look like a team that wanted to clinch their division and a playoff berth during their touchdown-less loss versus the lowly Browns on Sunday afternoon. Rather, according to at least a certain subsection of fans, they looked more like a team concerned with stopping Cleveland edge rusher Myles Garrett from breaking the single-season sack record, which currently sits at 22.5 and is held by both retired defensive end Michael Strahan and—you guessed it—Pittsburgh linebacker T.J. Watt.

So was it possible the Steelers were too concerned with keeping one of their own in the history books to keep their eyes on the prize heading into Sunday's game? According to head coach Mike Tomlin, the answer there is no.

"We didn't do anything against Myles that we don't normally do against Myles. The sack record is irrelevant," the coach said following the 13–6 loss. "We gotta minimize him if we want to injure their victory. We did the same thing last time we played 'em. 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."

Ahead of Sunday's game, Garrett, who is just a half-sack away from tying Strahan and Watt and a full sack away from setting a new benchmark of his own, said it would be "great" to make history against a "legendary" quarterback like Aaron Rodgers. Notably, the DE also told the Fox broadcast team a few weeks ago that Steeler players are instructed to take the penalty if Garrett gets even close to getting a sack in a game against them (whether that's record-related or just total hearsay, considering it's coming from Garrett himself, could be up for debate).

But, as Tomlin did mention, Garrett also had zero sacks when the Steelers played and beat the Browns back in Week 6. Which means it is possible that the only thing Pittsburgh did differently on Sunday was lose.

"I didn't think we played poorly," Tomlin added of this weekend's performance. "We just didn't make enough plays. I thought they played well. I thought the game was kind of unfolding in the way you would anticipate, but we never made that signature play that kind of got us over the hump."

Now, the Steelers must attempt to keep their postseason hopes alive with a win against the Ravens in Week 18. Garrett, meanwhile, will set a new NFL record if he takes down Joe Burrow at least once during the Browns' finale against the Bengals. TL;DR—it could be a very happy scene in Pittsburgh next weekend, for multiple reasons, or a very sad one.

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