Myles Garrett Hits IR After Rams' Brutal Opening Night Loss

The Los Angeles Rams just kicked off their season, and their defensive anchor is already getting his knee scoped.

Tom Pelissero of The Ringer and Netflix Sports reported Sunday that star pass rusher Myles Garrett is undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery and heading straight to injured reserve.

"Tom Pelissero reported that Garrett wasn't himself in Thursday's opener and had been dealing with lower-leg pain."

If you watched Thursday night's opener, this explains a lot. Garrett looked like a guy trying to run in a swimming pool during that brutal 27-7 blowout loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Pelissero noted he had been dealing with lower-leg pain, which is standard NFL speak for a guy whose leg was screaming at him every time he planted.

Hitting IR means Garrett is mandated to miss at least four weeks. That is a massive problem for a Los Angeles defense that just gave up 27 points while their best player was actually on the field. If you are looking at the Rams' upcoming spreads, you have to heavily factor in a pass rush that just lost its terrifying focal point.

You do not just replace a guy who requires double-teams on every single snap. The entire defensive scheme is built around the fact that the opposing quarterback is terrified of number 95. Without him, the secondary is going to have to cover for an extra two seconds, which in NFL time is roughly a financial quarter.

The hope is that Garrett is back in exactly four weeks. Until then, the Rams have to figure out how to generate pressure without their cheat code, or this season is going to spiral before Halloween.