Myles Garrett says Taylor Lewan spit in his face during his rookie year

Every NFL player has a “welcome to the league” moment. Usually, it involves a veteran linebacker decleating a rookie crossing over the middle, or a defensive end realizing college speed does not translate to Sunday afternoons. For Cleveland Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett, the initiation was significantly more gross.

During a live taping of New Heights at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles, Travis and Jason Kelce asked the reigning Defensive Player of the Year about his introduction to the pros. Garrett, drafted first overall in 2017, pointed directly at former Tennessee Titans tackle Taylor Lewan.

I remember I was going against Taylor Lewan. It was my first year and I knew he was bending the rules a little bit, you know, from what I had heard.

Lewan built a decade-long career in Tennessee on exactly this kind of antagonistic reputation. He was the guy you hated playing but loved having on your roster. He knew how to push a rookie to the edge before the ball even moved.

We line up and it’s like uh it’s it’s like first and 10 and I I line up tight. I know that the run’s coming. They got freaking Derrick Henry me at that time. And he he, you know, gets into his stance. He looks at me and spits right in my face.

It is the kind of biological warfare that usually triggers an instant flag for unnecessary roughness, assuming a referee actually sees it. Instead, Garrett had to process the insult while trying to shed a block against a heavy run scheme. He filed the grievance away for immediate motivation.

And I was like, I promise next time I see you, I’mma whip your ass.