Los Angeles Rams star defensive end Myles Garrett will have knee surgery and be placed on injured reserve, NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday morning.
The operation is meant to correct the same issue that limited him for much of training camp.
Garrett played in Thursday’s season opener in Melbourne, Australia, but the knee clearly held him back. The Rams fell 27-7 to the San Francisco 49ers, and Garrett finished the night without a tackle. It marked only the fourth time in his career he failed to record a tackle.
After the game, the two-time Defensive Player of the Year was blunt about how he felt.
“This was the worst version of myself that I’ve put out there,” Garrett said.
He added that he needed to recover and get back to the player he knows he can be.
“When I was out there, I was a little bit more focused on myself and trying to stay healthy than what they were doing, and that showed,” he said.
The problem first showed up as swelling during the summer. Coach Sean McVay said at the time that Garrett felt about 85 percent healthy and that the team was simply being careful.
Garrett sat out joint practices with the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints as a precaution. He returned to practice in the days before the team flew to Australia and was cleared to play.
McVay said after the opener that, to his knowledge, Garrett was healthy enough to take the field.
The 30-year-old came to Los Angeles in a June trade with the Cleveland Browns. The Rams sent pass rusher Jared Verse plus a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-rounder and a 2029 third-rounder to Cleveland.
Garrett had just set the NFL single-season sack record with 23 last year and won his second Defensive Player of the Year award.
Los Angeles saw him as the final piece for another Super Bowl push, especially after Aaron Donald came out of retirement to join the same defensive line. Donald did not play in Week 1.
Putting Garrett on injured reserve means he must miss at least four games. The Rams host the New York Giants on Monday night, Sept. 21, in their home opener at SoFi Stadium. They then visit the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles.
Los Angeles will have to rely on Byron Young and the rest of the front seven while Garrett recovers.
The timing is a setback for a team that entered the season with high expectations after last year’s deep playoff run. Garrett had been durable through most of his nine seasons in Cleveland, appearing in nearly every game. The only notable prior knee issue in public records was a mild strain during his final college season at Texas A&M.
The Rams have not given a detailed recovery timeline beyond the required injured-reserve minimum. How soon he returns will help decide whether the Rams stay in the thick of the NFC West race.
For now, the club that spent big to add the league’s premier pass rusher will have to find pressure without him.
