Last season, Carson Schwesinger emerged as one of the Browns' biggest success stories. That's why his margin for error has shrunk significantly this year. Especially with Myles Garrett no longer in Cleveland, the pressure on the second-year linebacker has only intensified.

The hole Garrett has left is too big to fill, and according to Ashley Bastock of cleveland.com, the pressure is on Schwesinger to step up as the defense's new centerpiece.

“In year two, the Browns will need him to take another step after their blockbuster move this summer in trading Myles Garrett to the LA Rams,” wrote Bastock on July 7.

Back in June, Garrett was traded to the Rams for Jared Verse. While it was a reasonable trade for the Browns on paper, they could witness a massive defensive drop-off this season. Garrett recorded 23 sacks last year, an NFL single-season record.

He also won the Defensive Player of the Year award and sacked elite quarterbacks across the league, taking down stars like Lamar Jackson, Caleb Williams, Brock Purdy, Josh Allen, and Drake Maye.

Last season went phenomenally well for Schwesinger, earning him the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

He finished with a rookie-best 156 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two interceptions, three pass breakups, and 10 special teams tackles across 16 starts.

Schwesinger posted nine games with double-digit tackles, including a seven-game streak, which was the longest in the NFL last season. That's exactly what the Browns defense needs this season.

"The Browns don’t need another award-winning campaign as much as they need their young linebacker to become the centerpiece of a defense entering a new era," Ashley Bastock of cleveland.com wrote on July 7.

His consistency silenced doubters last season, but will he be able to do that yet again this season with the absence of Myles Garrett?

"That boy can fly": Jared Verse gets honest about Carson Schwesinger

Yes, the Browns may be in a tough position considering their defensive leader is no longer with the team, but don't forget that Carson Schwesinger is the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year.

On top of that, they now have Jared Verse, who won the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year award, and he has nothing but praise for Schwesinger.

“Man, that boy can fly,” Verse said about Schwesinger last month. “Nah, he can work. I like that a lot. I like knowing that with that behind me that I can — I don’t got much to worry about."

This season, it is crucial that Verse and Schwesinger work together to maintain the elite standard of a Browns defense that ranked fourth in total yards allowed last year.

“I can play freely because I don’t have to worry if something gets by me. He’s going to be able to handle that. He’s going to be able to clean everything up. So no, that’s the exciting factor there,” Verse added.

Given that, what are your thoughts? Will he and Jared Verse be able to successfully replicate Myles Garrett's production? Tell us in the comments.

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Written by

Suryakant Das

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore