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Cleveland Browns star Jared Verse is setting the tone.<\/p>\n
Cleveland Browns<\/a> defensive end Jared Verse plans to make Trevor Lawrence uncomfortable Sunday, and he isn\u2019t being subtle about it.<\/p>\n Ahead of Cleveland\u2019s season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars<\/a>, Verse praised Lawrence\u2019s ability to punish a defense with his arm and legs. But the Browns\u2019 approach won\u2019t involve sitting back and hoping the quarterback makes a mistake<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cTrevor Lawrence is a great player,\u201d Verse said Thursday. \u201cHe can go back there and he can dot you up all day, but he can also run the ball around you if you give him those gaps of the seams. And we\u2019re just going to rush and get after him. We\u2019re not going to rush scared because you can\u2019t do that with anybody.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you rush scared, he\u2019s just going to be back there dotting you up the whole time. We\u2019re going to get after him. We\u2019re going to get to him. We\u2019re going to hit him. We\u2019re going to try to sack him a couple times, hopefully a lot more than a couple, but we\u2019re just going to do what we have to do to get that win.\u201d<\/p>\n Jared Verse Embraces Mike Rutenberg\u2019s Defensive Philosophy<\/p>\n \n Verse\u2019s approach fits what new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg has been preaching: smart and violent. Rutenberg has made effort, physicality and attacking the ball central to his defensive philosophy after taking over for Jim Schwartz<\/a>. The expectation extends beyond the pass rush. He wants defenders pursuing opportunities to force turnovers while trusting teammates to handle their assignments.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the ball is thrown, we\u2019re arriving with bad intentions,\u201d Rutenberg said. \u201cWe\u2019re built off that. We choose violence in everything we do, and it doesn\u2019t have to be a tackle, ball\u2019s in the air, we\u2019re knocking it out. That\u2019s what we\u2019re built off. We do our job so my brother can do his, I do mine and a little bit more. And our guys have done that. They do it in practice, they do it in walk through. It\u2019s awesome to see.\u201d<\/p>\n Sunday provides the first regular-season test of that approach. Verse sounds ready to help establish that identity during his first snaps in a Browns uniform.<\/p>\n \u201cThis defense is relentless,\u201d Verse said. \u201cWe\u2019re fast and relentless. In the preseason, you\u2019re out there trying to get some guys a little bit more play time and everything like that, but now it\u2019s time for us to get loose. This is the real season. It\u2019s time for us to go out there and dominate. And that\u2019s what this is. It\u2019s a dominant defense and that\u2019s what you\u2019re going to see.\u201d<\/p>\n Browns Need New-Look Offense to Deliver Against Jaguars<\/p>\n \n Cleveland enters the opener as a steep underdog, facing one of the larger spreads of the weekend<\/a>. But the Browns also look considerably different from a year ago, particularly on offense.<\/p>\n![\"Cleveland](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cleveland-browns-training-camp-berea-ohio-july-29-alex-wright-91.jpg\")
GettyJared Verse high-fives a Cleveland Browns teammate during training camp.\n<\/p>\n![\"Deshaun](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1789182389_513_new-england-patriots-v-cleveland-browns-cleveland-ohio-august-27-quarterback-3-e1787967933770.jpg\")
GettyThe Browns are relying on Deshaun Watson to move the offense.\n<\/p>\n