That's the Myles Garrett the Los Angeles Rams thought they were getting when they traded for him last offseason.
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year looked much more like himself in his first game back from arthroscopic knee surgery in Week 9, and he wasted no time being a major factor in the Rams' 20-13 win over the Washington Commanders
to push L.A. over .500 for the first time this season.There may still be some rust to shake off, considering Garrett was flagged twice for neutral zone infractions after jumping the snap count a hair too early, but that might be even scarier for opposing offenses, given he finished the day with three sacks and a forced fumble.
Garrett announced his arrival at the 2:31 mark of the second quarter, when
his pressure off the edge forced Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels to step up in the pocket and roll to his right. Garrett dodged a cut block attempt by tight end John Bates, reached over and swiped the ball out of Daniels' right hand for a strip-sack that Omar Speights recovered.
Myles Garrett’s first sack with the Rams 👏
— NFL (@NFL) November 8, 2026
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The timing of his first sack and turnover as a Ram couldn't have been better, since L.A. had just given up a fumble of their own two plays before.
That became a theme of the day as Garrett got to Daniels twice more in the fourth quarter. Lined up next to Aaron Donald, the defensive line duo with 13 First-Team All-Pro honors between them flashed exactly what they're capable of when they collapsed the pocket on their one-on-one matchups, with Donald bullrushing rookie center Matt Gulbin into Daniels' lap and Garrett ripping through right tackle Brandon Coleman and wrapping up Daniels for sack number two.
Garrett's third sack, however, was probably the most crucial.
Right after he was flagged for jumping into the neutral zone to set up third and five from the Rams' 38-yard line, Garrett overpowered Gulbin and once again put his facemask right in Daniels' chest and pushed him back to the 50-yard line with Donald right behind him - to force fourth-and-17 at the two-minute warning.
three sacks for this Myles Garrett guy pic.twitter.com/RpsM3zwHyd
— NFL (@NFL) November 8, 2026
Trailing by a touchdown, the Commanders had no choice but to go for it and failed to convert with an incomplete pass.
The Rams ultimately held on for their third consecutive win and with Garrett now back in the fold at full strength, they could be in line for a lot more of those in the second half of the season.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Myles Garrett returns with a vengeance, erupts for 3 sacks in Rams’ Week 9 win
