Browns' Maliek Collins to miss rest of season with quad injury

CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Maliek Collins will miss the rest of the season after suffering a quad injury in Sunday’s 26-8 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Coach Kevin Stefanski made the announcement Monday that Collins will have to undergo season-ending surgery.

The 10-year veteran defensive lineman suffered the non-contact injury during the third quarter. He was second on the team with 6 1/2 sacks along with 28 quarterback pressures.

Collins is also a key reason why All-Pro pass rusher Myles Garrett needs four sacks to break the NFL’s single-season record of 22 1/2.

“When you lose a guy like Maliek, you don’t replace him. He’s made a big impact on this football team on the field and off,” Stefanski said.

“We have some older guys in there (the defensive line room), but we have a bunch of young guys in there. I think they’ve learned a lot from the professional that Maliek is, and I think you have to carry that with you throughout.”

Collins’ injury with 9 minutes, 36 seconds remaining in the third quarter also set off a fracas between some of the Browns defensive linemen and San Francisco wide receiver Jauan Jennings. Garrett and Shelby Harris said some of Jennings’ comments after the play crossed the line.

Harris didn’t hide his feelings about Jennings after Sunday’s game.

“He says some things that you should not say to another man, ever,” Harris said. “But I don’t respect it because you say that, then run behind your O-line. That’s some real soft (stuff), and I want that known.

“I see exactly why they punched your (groin). I’m surprised nobody punched him in the jaw yet.”

It was the second straight game Jennings drew the ire of opposing defenses. Carolina safety Tre’von Moehrig was suspended one game without pay after punching Jennings during the fourth quarter of last Monday’s game.

Moehrig said he punched Jennings because of continuing physical play after the whistle and trash-talking throughout the game. Jennings walked over to Moehrig after the game, shoved and punched him in the face before both players were separated.

Jennings was fined $12,172 by the league for the punch.

Garrett said he was trying to separate everybody and find out what the problem was, before Jennings started coming at him.

“He had a lot to say that was demeaning and disparaging toward some of our players. … I mean, some guys just roll like that,” Garrett said. “I don’t feel like that belongs in the game. But, hey, if that works for him and them, then more power to him.”

Stefanski didn’t have any comments about what occurred, saying he was focused on Collins’ injury and not what was happening elsewhere on the field.

San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday that it was his understanding Jennings’ comments were not about Collins, who played for the 49ers last season.

“It just sounded like there were players standing around for a while because of the injury and then they got chirping at each other. I don’t know what words were said, but it sounded like he offended some guys with the words,” Shanahan said. “I’d have to hear it to have an opinion on it. I haven’t heard what he said that offended them so much. Until I do, I don’t have much of an opinion on it. That’s just trash talk between a couple of people out on the field, and I kind of leave it at that.”

Shanahan also defended Jennings’ playing style despite him getting under the skin of his opponents the past couple of games.

“I think Jauan plays to the whistle as well as any player in this league. He’s extremely aggressive and plays as hard as he can to the whistle, and he’s been doing that as Niner fans know and you guys know since he’s been here,” he said. “I think sometimes that offends other players and rubs people the wrong way because they’re not used to people going that hard to the whistle. But I think what JJ is very good at is not breaking rules.”