Myles Garrett slowed down in a big way at the end of 2020, and he admitted that he dealt with significant physical effects from his bout with COVID-19 long after he was cleared to return to play.
Garrett said Wednesday that he felt like he was operating at half his normal conditioning, and that his asthma worsened his symptoms and his endurance even after he’d recovered enough to play.
“As far as getting off the ball, I didn’t feel like I was getting off the ball,” Garrett said, via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com. “Athletically, I felt like I had it. Conditioning-wise, I felt like I was like 50%. I don’t think I’ve ever had to use oxygen so frequently so early into a game. I think [it was against] Tennessee, and I don’t think I had like a huge amount of snaps, but I was like hanging on. Once you get tired, you start losing the play, so you’re trying to think of what you’re supposed to do here. If you’re thinking what you’re supposed to do here, you can’t think about the alternatives or the options off that, the pass-rush moves or the rip or release for run blocks.”
The after-effects of COVID definitely weren’t just in Garrett’s head. There were plenty of numbers that back up his assertions. Plus, he had 9.5 sacks when he got sick in November, but ended up finishing with just 12 after missing two games.
The good news is Garrett said he has shaken off all remaining effects of the virus and expects to be at full strength all season. That means he has a chance to blow past some of his 2020 stats.
