BEREA — Myles Garrett was able to get to Dallas Cowboys' quarterback Dak Prescott once. It almost turned into a potential game-changing play, except that the Browns couldn't fall on the loose football.

It wouldn't be the last time Garrett would be oh so close to a play like that in the season opener. There would be other opportunities, but the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year just couldn't get to the elusive Prescott in time on those.

"That's the thin margins of the game," Garrett said Friday. "Being right there, but whether we needed to get some more pressure in his face, or just blanket the coverage just a little bit more, that's just rush and coverage working together. Sometimes it's going to be there, and I'm going to get that extra or another two big plays or strip sacks, and sometimes it's going to be really close, and just got to apply pressure to him until he feels like he has to hold it and he's throwing an errant ball because he's trying to rush or throw to get away from us."

Garrett didn't get another sack on Prescott, but he did get at least one hit on him and another pressure. The Browns, as a team, had three sacks of the Cowboys' Pro Bowl quarterback, including one by Dalvin Tomlinson and another by Garrett's defensive end compatriot, Za'Darius Smith.

One of the problems the Browns had, Garrett said immediately after the game, was the tempo the Cowboys tried to play at following the first possession. Dallas' choice to get on the ball and go quicker wasn't reciprocated at times by the Browns' defense, which led to some issues.

Those issues could come up again on Sunday when the Browns travel to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars. Garrett and the rest of the defense will have to deal with another big, athletic quarterback in Jacksonville's Trevor Lawrence.

"He brings confidence and the man’s strong with the ball," Garrett said of Lawrence. "He’s confident with his legs and he’s definitely got a lot of different angles or spots he can put the ball across the field. And, hell, he’s tall as hell, he can see the entire field. So my man is really a prototypical quarterback as far as his size, his arm strength, his accuracy and what he can do when he’s on the football field."

Lawrence was dealing with a high ankle sprain last December when the Browns beat the Jaguars 31-27 in Cleveland. He did throw for 257 yards and three touchdowns, but only completed 28 of 50 passes while throwing three interceptions and being sacked four times.

The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 draft has returned to full health with the return of the new season. He threw for 162 yards and a touchdown, while completing 12 of 21 passes and getting sacked three times.

Garrett's not letting Lawrence's sack totals fool him. He's not expecting some kind of statue in the pocket. although it's not just about being able to tuck it and run.

It's about the central aspect of quarterback confidence.

"Just the composure in the pocket," Garrett said. "Not feeling too pressured, never getting too high, too low. He's always pretty calm when he's looking downfield. It's not like he's feeling the pressure or the blitzes. He's not looking over his shoulder. He's not tap dancing. Looking down the field, going through his progressions, trying to make that play. He's only gotten more confident as the years have gone."

That can change, though, for a quarterback. It's changed for plenty of other quarterbacks — including maybe Garrett's own teammate Deshaun Watson — and it's something that could happen to Lawrence on Sunday.

How? That's where Garrett and the rest of the Browns' pass rush enters the chat if they can, in Garrett's words, "hit him multiple times."

"You can definitely tell when someone's losing confidence," Garrett said. "You try to play in to it, and continue to find a way to chip away at that confidence and that composure. Sometimes it's early, sometimes it's late, but once you find that crack, you got to continue to chip away until you completely destroy them mentally."

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Myles Garrett taking aim at Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence's 'confidence'