Myles Garrett called his performance in the Los Angeles Rams’ 27-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne on Friday the worst version of himself he has put out there, saying his knee was not fully healthy going into the game.
He missed most of training camp with what coach Sean McVay described as swelling in his knee. He declined to specify which knee but wore a sleeve on his left leg at multiple practices. He said he was more focused on staying healthy than on what the 49ers were doing, and that it showed. He said he was not who he needed to be for his team.
Asked what his focus was for Week 2, he said getting healthy.
McVay said he believed Garrett was 100 percent healthy going into the game. When McVay first acknowledged the injury during training camp, he said Garrett had told him he was feeling about 85 percent.
The Rams pass rush pressured Brock Purdy on just 7 of 36 dropbacks, a 19 percent rate that was their third-lowest since the beginning of last season. Garrett finished with three individual pressures. It was his first game without a tackle since Week 11 of the 2024 season and just the fourth such game of his career.
The context
Garrett, the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, was traded to Los Angeles this offseason after setting the single-season sack record last season with the Cleveland Browns. His Week 1 performance represented an unusual early test of how the Rams’ marquee offseason addition will hold up over the course of the season.
49ers left tackle Trent Williams said he could not tell that Garrett was not fully healthy, adding that he is still really hard to block and that no matter what he is going through, he is never an easy assignment for anyone.
San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers‘ offensive line did an outstanding job and that the team did not change its plan after learning Aaron Donald would not play. He said they had to protect against the pass rushers the same way regardless of who was on the field and that Donald’s absence did not change the game plan.
What comes next
The Rams’ most important defensive player being candid about his health puts the conversation in a productive place. He said he has to be better and has to find a way to recover and get back to the player he knows he can be and has shown he can be.
Whether the Rams manage his snap count or usage in Week 2 as his knee improves was not confirmed. The Rams travel back to the United States from Australia with a compressed schedule ahead of their next game.
