Myles Garrett injuries: Browns star misses practice as he deals with other ailments aside from foot issues

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett is dealing with an injury in both feet and underwent an MRI on Monday after re-aggravating the ongoing issue Sunday. Those results came back clean, according to NFL Media, but he will not be practicing Wednesday, per head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Stefanski said Garrett is working through Achilles and thigh injuries that occurred during Sunday’s game against the New York Giants. The defensive end is determined to play and is not ruled out for this week’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

During their Week 3 loss to the Giants, Garrett needed some attention in the medical tent and worked with trainers. He was able to return to the game, but was considered “day to day,” Stefanski said Monday.

The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year said last week that he believes the injury has spread to other areas. 

“It’s more than just the foot,” the former No. 1 overall pick said, via ESPN. “It’s multiple things going on. So, I mean, if I think the foot’s feeling good or feeling better, it’s one thing or another. So it’s kind of just feeding into each other right now, and nothing’s sitting right because nothing has time to heal because I’m leaning on something else and I’m compensating here to make something hurt there. It’s just been, like I said, a cycle.”

Garrett admitted that he could need a procedure “further down the line,” but right now it is unclear what that procedure would be. His current plan is to continue to play, and he isn’t spending time worrying about the issue until he gets more clarity. 

“I’m not concerned about something I don’t know about,” Garrett said, on potentially missing time. “So, get the results and move from there. At this point, I’m going to continue to move as I have and look forward to playing the next game until someone tells me otherwise.”

Garrett has dealt with these foot injuries since the start of the season and his snap count has been impacted. He had fewer defensive snaps against the Cowboys and Jaguars and could be seen tending to the injured area, massaging his feet on the sidelines.

Last season, Garrett was on the field 76.46% of the Browns defensive snaps. So far this season, he’s taken 67.18% of those snaps. If the pain does continue, those snap counts could continue to decrease.

His two trips to the medical tent and his body language — being doubled over in what appeared to be due to pain, as well as needing assistance walking off the field at one point this Sunday — were red flags that the injury may have worsened. He was also seen limping after the game. 

Garrett’s status throughout the week of practice is worth continuing to monitor to better determine his availability for Week 4. Garrett is pretty durable, missing just one game due to injury since the start of the 2021 season.