Browns' Myles Garrett On Steelers QB Mason Rudolph: He'll Get Hit Like Everybody Else

Myles Garrett doesn't intend to hit Mason Rudolph with a helmet, so far as we know, but Garrett won't hesitate to hit Rudolph with his body.

Garrett is a defensive lineman for the Cleveland Browns, Rudolph a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rudolph will be filling in for starter Ben Roethlisberger when the Browns and Steelers meet Sunday in Cleveland.

It was about a year ago when Garrett and Rudolph got into an on-field altercation, and Garrett got a hold of Rudolph's helmet and whacked him with it. For the first time since that incident, they meet again.

When one reporter asked if Garrett would be hesitant to legally hit Rudolph on Sunday, Garrett was direct.

“Get out of here with that. That won’t run through my mind at all," Garrett told the media. "He’ll get hit just like everybody else. I’m not going to put a pillow underneath his head before I take him to the ground."

Garrett then added a disclaimer.

"But I’m not going to do anything extra," he said.

The game means nothing to the Steelers. Their playoff spot is secure. So is home-field advantage in the first round. But it means everything to the Browns. Win, and they are in the playoffs for the first time since 2002. Lose, and the drought is highly likely to continue.

On the bright side for the Browns, the Steelers are pretty much rolling out the red carpet. Coach Mike Tomlin is resting the majority of the starters and will likely do the same with key backups during the course of the game.

Rudolph said he has not heard from Garrett since the incident -- but doesn't appear to be too bothered by it.

"He has not reached out to me in any capacity, but I have a lot of respect for Myles,” Rudolph told reporters. "He’s a menace in the backfield. He’s very disruptive. We obviously are very aware of that and we treat him with respect.”

Garrett previously said he has no issue with Rudolph, and that he would have "no problem reaching out to (Rudolph) or talking to him before or after the game.”

The Browns (10-5) are coming off a stunning loss to the New York Jets. The Steelers (12-3) snapped a three-game skid with a comeback win over the Indianapolis Colts.