No one wins NFL games in June, and no one earns Pro Bowl honors for a press conference, but for the Cleveland Browns and the team’s backers, the introduction of new defensive edge Jared Verse on Wednesday could not have gone much better. Verse is the 25-year-old pass rusher who was the main return piece in the Myles Garrett trade–along with three draft picks, including a 2027 first-rounder–and though he is not being asked to be the next Garrett, he is likely to fill his shoes, both on the field and as a defensive spokesman and leader.
So far, so good. Verse was honest in expressing his disappointment at having been dealt by the Super Bowl favorites, the Rams, to a team that has one playoff win in the last three decades. But with a new coaching staff and a team increasingly built around youth, Verse also expressed exemplary confidence in what’s next for his new team.
Jared Verse Says Browns ‘Are Not Gonna Lose a Game’
Verse was not quite ready to get his hands dirty at Wednesday’s Browns OTA, the eighth of the offseason for the team, but he was full of enthusiasm for how the team looked, describing new coach Todd Monken’s practice as “alive.” More than that, he noted that with the energy the team was showing on the field and in the facility, there could be a big season ahead. Maybe even an undefeated season.
Said Verse, “Today was a big factor that watching how the guys are in the weight room, how they are on the field, like, them boys are flying. Like, I’m like, ‘All right, like, y’all not messing around. Y’all not gonna lose a game.’ So we not gonna lose with the way them boys moving.”
So there you have it. Jared Verse is saying the Browns will go 17-0.
Browns Getting ‘Violent’ Star
Verse also caught some attention among Browns observers when asked for a description of his game. Those who have not seen him consistently might note he has only 12 career sacks, but the fact is, he has been very good at racking up pressures in his two seasons in the NFL, and that’s why he was the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2024, and a Pro Bowler in his first two seasons.
He said of his style: “It’s violent. It’s very violent. It’s very mean. It’s very – why are you in my way? I play angry because I’m like, ‘why do you think you can block me?’ And if you know, get the best of me – oh, so you’re game planning for me. All right, so I got something else for you. Like, it’s a very violent game when you’re against me.”
Jared Verse: ‘Chip on My Shoulder’
The hope for the Browns is that, if Verse is angry with the Rams for trading him, he will spend the foreseeable future trying to prove to them how wrong they were to do so. It was the same energy that carried him from the University of Albany to Florida State and on to the first round of the draft.
The team could benefit from that.
As Verse said: “I have always been doubted my whole life. Coming out of high school, one offer, going to college, leaving college I was less doubted but I still had that chip on my shoulder. Definitely puts a chip on my shoulder. When I was with the Rams, I was still learning how to be a defensive end, learning how to be a football player, an NFL player, how to play at this next level.
“And then the Browns got me, and they’re going to get the best of me. They’re not going to get a half-finished product or something you gotta work on, this is going to be the best version of me. Everything I have done this offseason, it is going to be great.”
Browns ‘Violent’ New Star Jared Verse Sends Warning