Over the first two seasons of his NFL career, new Cleveland Browns edge rusher Jared Verse played for Rams teams that combined to go 22-12. About 2,300 miles to the northeast, the Browns were compiling a measly eight wins in those two years, as their struggle to find a competent quarterback and build out depth around the roster showed itself consistently on gamedays. The Browns had some good players–Myles Garrett chief among them–but they were never going to go very far without a much-improved QB situation.
They haven’t improved it here in the short term, as an aging Deshaun Watson prepares to take the reins as the starter in Week 1, with mediocre Shedeur Sanders behind him as the QB2. There is an opportunity, though, with a heap of draft picks ahead of them and a quality field of quarterbacks in the college ranks this season, to secure a top quarterback for the future. The Browns would just need to drop 13 or so of their 17 games this season.
Jared Verse Would Be Angered if Browns Tank
Yes, there would be some long-term gain in exchange for the short-term pain of losing this year for the Browns. The worse they are, the better their odds of getting their pick of the quarterback market. Tanking makes sense.
Just don’t tell that to Verse, as he is prepped for his first season in Cleveland after he was the main return pieces in the stunning trade of Myles Garrett late in the spring. He made clear what his message would be to the front office if they wanted the Browns to lay down this season.
Said Verse: “This isn’t a season to go tank and try to get a top-two pick and try to get some dog or something like that. This is not that. I’m not going to let it be that. If anybody wants it to be that, just take me off the field because I’m not going to be a part of anything like that. We’re going out there to win. We’re going out there to dominate.”
Jared Verse Not Chasing Personal Goals
Verse was asked about personal goals, after having earned Pro Bowl honors, as well as Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, in his first two seasons. He has mentioned in the past that he wants to get to the quarterback more, after logging consistent pressure but being credited with only 12.0 sacks to date. But his stats are not on his mind, he says.
Verse said: “Too many times in my career, I have been focused on what I could do and how I could get to a position at the end of the season I could be proud of. Right now, I am just focused on 1-0. I don’t have any position, anything in my mind—I want to win this, I want to do that. I am just focused on 1-0. Next week, I will focus on 2-0.”
‘People Get Confused’ About Browns Trade
Verse said he understands that some folks look at the Browns trading Myles Garrett and see a team giving up on trying. He does not want fans to be confused by that, though.
“I think a lot of people get confused about the trade,” Verse said. “You’re losing Myles. “He’s a great player. He’s one of the best players ever to play the game. A lot of people are like, ‘Oh, they’re going to be bad because this is happening, that’s happening. This quarterback, that quarterback, running backs.’
“Whatever they’re talking about, focus on the ball. We’re out there going to win.”
Browns’ Jared Verse Sends Direct Warning to Team on Tanking