Wishing harm on an opponent is the epitome of classless football fandom, but at the same time, injuries are a grim reality of the NFL. Based on the latest news out of Cleveland Browns practice, the Cincinnati Bengals may have just caught a huge break in Week 1.
Much of the concern around the Bengals' team is the tenuous state of their offensive line and a defense that was among the league's worst last season. Anything that can break Cincinnati's way to mitigate those issues, they'll take it.
Unfortunately, that Bengals-centric break comes at the expense of the Browns and their clear face of the franchise.
Myles Garrett misses Browns practice with hip injury
Cleveland.com beat writer Mary Kay Cabot broke the bad Browns news about superstar pass-rusher Myles Garrett. While there's no update as of now on Garrett's status for Sunday's AFC North duel, it's worth noting that he wasn't featured on Wednesday's injury report.
#Browns #Bengals injury report for Wednesday: pic.twitter.com/IeOa9mOGNf
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) September 3, 2025
As you can see, the Browns were limping into Week 1 to a certain degree, whereas not a single Bengal showed up on the injury report. Cabot also reported Garrett was spotted walking into the facility with his physical therapist after Thursday's practice.
I'm not going to overreact to this news just yet. Garrett's absence from the field could've been precautionary only. After all, if Cleveland is to have any chance at winning as a heavy home underdog, Garrett will need to wreak havoc on Joe Burrow and the Bengals' elite offense.
Burrow already gives Cincinnati a huge edge in the Battle of Ohio in relation to his counterpart, Joe Flacco. It will be hard enough for the Browns' 40-year-old field general to put up enough points to keep up with Burrow, who can score at will on just about any foe he faces.
A very quick search in the midst of this Garrett news led me to find that he landed on the injury report in November 2024 with a hip issue. Whether that's related to this latest ailment on that part of his body is unclear, but there's at least some precedent for that area giving him grief.
Garrett has averaged 12.8 sacks per season during his eight-year NFL career. The man is simply as close to unblockable as any defensive end in the sport. His absence from the field Sunday could lead the spread to swing by at least a full point, if not more. Time will tell if Garrett is good to go for Week 1, but my goodness, what a setback this could be for Cleveland right out of the gates.
Speaking of early setbacks, Burrow is no stranger to being banged up or recovering from a major injury entering an NFL season. This is his sixth year as a pro, and marks the first time Burrow saw significant preseason action. Perhaps that, combined with Garrett potentially being at least limited, can help Burrow win just his second Week 1 start and avoid a 0-2 record for the fourth year in a row.