Unlocking Garrett's Success: The Power of Film Study and Mentorship

Alan Kornspan

Believeland Media

Myles Garrett had an incredible 2023 season in which he was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

In earning the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, Garrett had 14 sacks and 42 tackles, 17 of which were tackles for losses.

Beyond these numbers, Garrett also had 16 quarterback knockdowns and 37 quarterback pressures.

On Friday, Garret earned an additional accolade.

Associated Press sports writer Rob Maaddi reported that the AP ranked Garrett as the top NFL defensive lineman heading into the 2024 season.

Eight AP writers ranked the top defensive lineman and Garrett got ranked number one by six out of the eight writers in order to earn the award.

So what does the NFL Defensive Player of the Year do during the off-season?

Focus on getting better of course.

Focused on Film Study During Off-Season

After the Cleveland Browns second day of practice at The Greenbrier, Garrett was asked what he focused on during the off-season.

Even though Garrett is one of the best players in the NFL, he still focuses on getting better during the off-season.

During this most recent off-season, a main area Garrett concentrated on was watching film, not only of himself, but other players as well.

In fact, he studied how other NFL players deal with various situations to see if he could pick up techniques that he can utilize in his own game. In particular, Garrett said that he specifically watched film of players such as Nick Bosa, Maxx Crosby, TJ Watt, and Micah Parsons.

“Watching those guys definitely helps take my game to the next level because we have so many talented guys at the position,” Garrett said.

“So (I am) just trying to learn from my own mistakes, watching it, you know, day in and day out, making sure I minimize the mistakes that I made.”

Garret Focused On Mentoring and Helping Teammates Improve

Garrett also talked about his focus on being a leader and mentor to his teammates during training camp.

In trying to help his teammates get better, Garrett watches how they perform and provides his teammates with feedback. Thus, as a veteran, Garrett is almost like a player/coach on the field.

“I’m trying to see if I can either help, offer some advice, give them something I’ve been seeing that make their move improve or maybe shorten their steps, quicken their time to the quarterback or to the ball carrier, or trying to take what they’re using and put it in my arsenal,” said Garrett.

Garrett mentioned that his teammates ask him for advice on how they can improve and that his teammates are interested in the information he is providing.

So what type of coaching process does Garrett use to help his teammates improve?

He will observe his teammates perform and then analyze what they are doing. Garrett then gives the players feedback on how they can improve.

“‘This is what you’re doing, this is what I see, this is how you can improve, change your game,” said Garrett as he explained the process of helping his teammates improve.

Garrett said that his teammates are interested in hearing his thoughts.

“They’ve been receptive, and I’m continuing to give advice as I get questions and try to improve each day in my leadership role,” Garrett said.

Thus, as a leader, Garrett is trying to help his teammates stay focused on the process of improvement and get better day in and day out.

“I want everyone to be able to take something from this camp, get better each day, 1% or 0.1%, whatever it is,” said Garrett.