Browns defensive end Jared Verse made a fair amount of noise heading into Sunday’s game against the Steelers, but he was mostly silent on the field in Pittsburgh.

Verse had one tackle in the 27-6 Steelers win and that continued the slow start to his Browns tenure. Verse had 8.5 sacks and 34 quarterback hits in 20 total games for the Rams in 2025, but had no sacks and six quarterback hits since coming to Cleveland in the Myles Garrett trade.

At a Monday press conference, Browns head coach Todd Monken was asked about the lack of splash plays and whether the expectations for immediate impact were unrealistic. Monken preached patience while expressing confidence that bigger things are coming for Verse.

“Well, I think it’s too early to say anything. I mean, I love the way Jared works every day since he’s come here, just like all of our guys, he loves to work,” Monken said, via a transcript from the team. “He likes being on the field and practicing. And I think it’s a matter of adapting to our style, which is, you know, there are some things that aren’t as similar to what he was used to doing with the Rams and the attack style. And I think it’s just a matter of time before, you know, he really gets comfortable in what we’re doing defensively. And it’s unfair to compare him to Myles Garrett. I think that’s always been unfair. Myles is in an elite category of his own. That’s okay. I mean, that’s who he is. But we just need Jared to be the best version of Jared, and I think we’re going to continue to see growth there. And again, what will help us? Be ahead in games, force the other team to throw it, and I think you’ll start to see his sacks start to pile up.”

The Browns have a 5-3 record despite the lack of contributions from Verse, but their hopes of making a playoff push over the second half would feel stronger if he starts making more headlines with his play than his locker room quotes.