When the Cleveland Browns sent Myles Garrett to the LA Rams for Jared Verse and a haul of future picks, Cleveland was betting that Verse could carry the edge-rushing load. Five months later, he’s carrying a different weight: a 27-6 loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers, no sack to his name, and a viral body slam to explain.

For Verse, who appeared quite confident in his team’s ability before the game, faced a tough reality. As a result, during a media interaction ahead of the Week 9 clash against the New Orleans Saints, the Browns DE threw his teammates under the bus and urged them to improve their performance.

“The conversation that we’ve had, we’ve spoken about, I’ve made my concerns known,” Verse said. “I’ve made my issues known about the situation, but also, I didn’t put them in a position to let them know that I didn’t let them know beforehand that I was going to talk the way I talked to the Steelers and the Steeler Nation or whatever they are. But I got to be better than that. I didn’t do enough on my part, and we all gotta pick it up.”

The entire fiasco began in Week 4 when the Browns defeated the Steelers 27-24. Following the win, Jared Verse publicly called out the Steelers’ offensive line, labeling their play style “dirty” due to their use of double-teams and sliding blocks. To that end, he also issued a warning.

“They were talking crazy,” Verse told reporters after the game. “I was telling them, ‘Y’all double-teaming and sliding and you’re garbage.’ I don’t have respect for anybody that plays too dirty and does too much extra [stuff] after the game. I can’t wait to see them again. It’s going to be a great time when I see them again.”

At the same time, Steelers veteran DT Cam Heyward appeared on The Rich Eisen Show and warned that Verse’s comments will be addressed on the field during their upcoming rematch. Meanwhile, Verse responded to the warning by dismissing Heyward’s comments and boldly declaring that the Browns are going to “make Pittsburgh ours.”

However, the rematch on November 1 produced a different outcome. The Steelers came strong and defeated the Browns 27-6. But the game garnered attention for different reasons.

After a Steelers touchdown, putting them 7-0, Jared Verse attempted to block the extra point. However, Steelers guard Mason McCormick caught him mid-air and body-slammed him headfirst into the turf. While McCormick was penalized for roughness, the video of the incident immediately went viral.

Jared Verse particularly seemed disappointed with how the Browns performed in the Week 8 game. But what did actually go wrong for Cleveland? First off, the Browns’ offensive line had its worst game of the season, yielding eight sacks. They also failed to establish any momentum on the ground, finishing the game with only 34 rushing yards on 15 total carries.

Meanwhile, on defense, the Browns were brutally dominated by the Steelers’ run game, allowing 200 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. All these statistics, along with Jared Verse’s viral body slam, somewhat resulted in the Browns’ DE calling out his teammates to step up their performance and have each other’s backs.