The blockbuster trade between the Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns involving Myles Garrett and Jared Verse has not gone according to plan for either team. Garrett has played one game for the Rams, spending the last seven weeks on injured reserve after undergoing knee surgery. Verse, meanwhile, has played eight games for the Browns but has yet to record a single sack.
As disappointing as Garrett’s absence has been in Los Angeles, Verse has been in the news for all the wrong reasons in Cleveland. Not only are fans frustrated with his lack of production as a pass rusher, but he’s now being criticized for his comments to the media.
Leading up to Sunday’s game against the Steelers, Verse said he wasn’t “worried about Cam (Heyward)” or “about their
O-line.” The Browns lost that game, 27-6, and afterwards, Verse doubled down by saying he stands by everything he said.
Fans called him out for not backing up his comments, finishing the game with four tackles and no sacks or QB hits. During the loss, Verse was picked up and dropped on his neck by Steelers lineman Mason McCormick while trying to block a field goal.
During his press conference on Thursday, he called out his teammates for not backing him up and coming to his defense after McCormick threw him to the ground.
"The lack of reaction by those around me upset me a lot," Verse said. "The similar play happened to Derek Barnett on, I think, the next field goal, and I spazzed. I lost it because those are my brothers, those are my teammates. And when you do something like that to them, it upsets me very deeply.”
"That's a conversation that we've had, we’ve spoken about. I've made my concerns known, I’ve made my issues known about the situation, but also, I didn't put them in a position to let them know beforehand I was going to talk the way I talked to the Steelers and Steelers Nation or whatever they are. I got to be better than that. I didn't do enough on my part. We all got to pick it up."
#Browns DE Jared Verse says he was upset his teammates didn’t stand up for him after #Steelers G Mason McCormick threw him to the turf—and he had that conversation with them.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 5, 2026
“That honestly could have put me in a position to not be able to finish the season, put me in a position… https://t.co/8eKpqrPf2T pic.twitter.com/KcBMKgM3ZX
Naturally, fans didn't appreciate Verse calling out his teammates publicly. And it's even worse that he hasn't been producing the way everyone expected him to in Cleveland.
He doesn't have a sack and only has four tackles for a loss with six quarterback hits, finishing three different games without a single pressure, and two others with only one pressure.
According to PFF, Verse only has 13 total pressures. For comparison, Josaiah Stewart has 17 pressures and Byron Young has 35.
In his same press conference on Thursday, Verse indicated his lack of production is because the Browns haven't been getting in enough third-and-long situations to unleash him as a pass rusher.
“I think attention has been focused on me not doing enough on this aspect, that aspect, I don’t think think we’ve been getting enough 3rd and longs to put myself in the position to get the stats,” Jared Verse on his lack of production this season. pic.twitter.com/0T8eD5RAOb
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) November 5, 2026
Verse is a very good player, but he hasn't had the impact many expected him to have in Cleveland. There's still plenty of time for him to right the ship with the Browns, and it's not as if Garrett has done anything with the Rams, but Cleveland can't be thrilled with the return from that trade so far.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Jared Verse keeps making headlines for the wrong reasons in Cleveland
