Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett reached 100 career sacks during Sunday’s Week 16 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Garrett made the historic sack late in the first half, tackling Joe Burrow for a loss of eight yards. That gave him 100.5 career sacks, tying him for No. 60 on the NFL all-time list. He now has 12 for the season.
Sailing Burrow to hit the mark seemed appropriate, as Garrett got to the Bengals’ QB nine times in the eight games they played against each other. That’s the most Garrett has sacked and accumulated against a team during his NFL career.
Garrett becomes the first player in league history to reach 100 sacks before the age of 29. He will turn 29 next week. With the sack, he also tied Bruce Smith and Lawrence Taylor as the fourth-fastest player to reach 100 sacks, achieving the figure in 115 games played. (Smith is the NFL’s all-time sack leader with 200, while Taylor is No. 9 with 142.)
Only Reggie White (96), TJ Watt (109) and DeMarcus Ware (113) have reached the mark in fewer games.
Garrett’s historic sack also comes days after he told reporters that the Browns need to show they have a plan to win for him to consider finishing his career in Cleveland.
“First and foremost, I want to win and I want the Browns to be able to put me and us in a position to win.” Garrett told reporters. “I’m not trying to rebuild. I’m trying to win right now. “And I want that to be evident when the season is over and we have those discussions.”
Garrett is signed for two more seasons with the Browns. But the team has gone 53-75 in seven years since Cleveland. selected him No. 1 overall of Texas A&M, including this season’s 3-11 record through Week 16.
“I want to stay loyal to a team that showed loyalty to me and faith in me by drafting me, but we have to do, at the end of the day, what’s best for us,” Garrett added.