Joe Burrow found himself at the center of online backlash Sunday after being sacked by Myles Garrett for an NFL single-season record.
While the moment cemented Garrett’s place in league history, it quickly ignited debate, with some fans questioning Burrow’s role in how the record-setting play unfolded.
Burrow said entering the game that he didn’t plan to do anything special to avoid being the record-setting sack. He had been able to evade Garrett for most of the afternoon thanks to the Bengals‘ game plan and a quick release. However, late in the fourth quarter, Garrett got the perfect jump, beat his blocker and took down Burrow for his record-setting 23rd sack of the season.
Some were not satisfied with how the play went down and Burrow’s actions on the play.
“Joe Burrow is an absolute joke. Just took a dive for Myles Garrett,” one fan said. “Looking forward to him rotting away in Cincy for the rest of his career while he cries about it.”
“Joe Burrow basically gives Myles Garrett the sack record,” another fan said. “Pathetic way to break a record.”
“Burrow really took a dive for Myles Garrett. No wonder those organizations will never mean (expletive),” a fan said.
Michael Strahan Controversy Opens Up Criticism of Browns DE Myles Garrett
Part of the criticism stems from how the previous record was set. Michael Strahan recorded his record-setting sack during the final game of the 2001 season against the Packers, bringing down Brett Favre to establish the mark. The play, however, has long been viewed as controversial, with critics noting that Favre appeared to give himself up on a rollout directly into Strahan’s path. Favre has since acknowledged the circumstances surrounding the sack.
“I booted out of a run thinking it would be wide open, saw Strahan standing there and ducked down,” Favre said on X, reflecting on the play. “The game was over. There was no need for me to do anything spectacular. It probably wasn’t Michael’s best sack or tackle for loss,” Favre said of the play. In a different game or situation, I would have made a bigger effort to avoid the sack or TFL.”
Strahan addressed Garrett setting the record on Sunday. He said he still views himself as the record-holder for a 16-game season.
“I mean, I hold the record for a 16-game season. He holds the record for the 17-game season. That’s the way it works out,” Strahan said on FOX. “You can’t compare records from 12-game seasons to 16 or 17-game seasons.”
Strahan also called Garrett “amazing” and said he expects the 30-year-old Browns star to continue to rack up more sacks.
Browns DE Myles Garrett: Bengals Made it Tough
For anyone watching the game, it was clear that the Bengals did their best to neutralize Garrett. But the door opened when Burrow and Cincinnati were looking to take the lead late.
“That was a stereotypical sack for me,” Garrett said. “I was watching the clock. I knew the next time he gave the count, they were going. They had a couple of other tells that gave me the snap count. As soon as I saw it aligned, that was probably the best get-off I’ve ever had trying to get that sack. The rest is history.”
Garrett credited the Bengals for making it challenging for him.
“It was everything I expected. It was so tough. I knew they were going to make it difficult, but (expletive), I don’t think I saw more than three singles on a real dropback the whole game,” Garrett said. “I knew if I did, I had to make the moment count.”
Garrett set an ambitious goal of 25 sacks. While he didn’t quite reach it, he still made history and will now head into future seasons with the chance to raise the bar even higher by breaking his own record.
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