Terron Armstead spent over a decade getting his lunch money taken by some of the most athletic freaks of nature the NFL has ever seen. The veteran left tackle just wrapped up his final season in Miami, as probably, his body sent him a thank-you card. Twelve years of pancake blocks, bull rushes, and speed moves that would make your head spin—that’s enough punishment for any man. But here’s where it gets interesting: instead of riding off into the sunset quietly, Armstead decided to spill the tea on exactly which pass rushers used to keep him up at night before game day.
Terron Armstead basically created a “thank God I never have to see you again” list, and some of the names he dropped are absolutely wild. When Dov Kleiman dropped that video Tuesday, featuring the retired star breaking down the pass rushers/linebackers who basically convinced him to call it quits, nobody expected a first-year player to steal the show.
But that’s exactly what happened when Armstead started mentioning names, and the first one out of his mouth wasn’t some established All-Pro monster – it was Sean McVay’s $15 million star and Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jared Verse, a guy who just finished his rookie campaign. Yes! And guess what? The respect in Armstead’s voice was genuine when he talked about the young terror.
Terron Armstead speaks on the players that made it easier for him to retire:
“That young boy, Jared Verse? I’m cool. I’m good. I never gotta see that man again.”
Extremely high praise for Jared pic.twitter.com/GKubzzFxHH
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) June 18, 2025
“That young boy, Jerry Verse? Yep. I’m cool. I’m good. I never got to see that man again. I’m all right with, I’m okay with that. Never seeing that young man again in my life.” You could almost hear the relief bleeding through his words. Throughout the interview, Armstead kept circling back to how Verse was just “different.” This kind of compliment carries serious weight. After all, it’s coming from someone who has worked with elite pass rushers for more than a decade.
What makes Verse’s inclusion even more eyebrow-raising is his stat sheet from last season. The kid only managed 4.5 sacks as a rookie, which doesn’t exactly scream “retire immediately” numbers. But anyone who watched him play knows the stats don’t tell the whole story. Verse racked up 66 combined tackles, delivered 18 quarterback hits, forced two fumbles, and broke up two passes. The Rams basically handed him Aaron Donald’s old job after the Hall of Famer shocked everyone by retiring, and Verse didn’t flinch. That Defensive Rookie of the Year trophy sitting on his shelf proves he belonged from day one.
Besides him, Armstead’s other choices felt more predictable but still packed an emotional punch. When it came to Cleveland’s Myles Garrett, the exhaustion was real: “I’ve had enough battles with Myles Garrett … I’m cool with that. We’ve danced enough.” You get the sense these two have some serious history, the kind built over years of Sunday afternoon wars in the trenches. Then there’s Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson, who got Armstead waxing poetic about consistency and relentlessness. “He’s consistent. He’s relentless,” Armstead explained, adding that “The defense is completely different without [Hendrickson].” When the hosts joked about Hendrickson’s agent using those quotes for contract negotiations, you could tell Armstead knew he’d just handed the pass rusher some serious leverage.
The whole thing felt refreshingly honest coming from a guy who just capped off a solid 12-year career. Armstead went from a third-round pick in New Orleans back in 2013 to becoming a cornerstone left tackle who protected Drew Brees for nine seasons. Three Pro Bowl selections with the Saints, then two more after joining Miami in 2021 – that’s the resume of someone who’s seen it all.
But even with all that experience, even after facing every elite pass rusher the league could throw at him, it was a rookie who left the biggest impression during his final season. That says everything you need to know about what Jared Verse is going to become in this league. But Armstead wasn’t just dishing out respect to the pass rushers who made his life miserable over the years. The veteran tackle also had some serious love for Miami’s very own franchise quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa.
Terron Armstead says Tua Tagovailoa has that Drew Brees “Assassin mode”
While most of South Florida seems ready to write off Tua Tagovailoa after another injury-plagued season, Terron Armstead just threw cold water on all the doubters. The recently retired left tackle, who protected both Drew Brees in New Orleans and Tua in Miami, isn’t buying into the doom-and-gloom narrative that’s been following the Dolphins quarterback around like a dark cloud.
Armstead got real about what he’s witnessed firsthand during their three seasons together. “Honestly believe in Tua,” he said without hesitation. “Believe in his ability. I’ve seen him snap into a mode that looked familiar to me from Drew Brees. That’s why I have no problem making that comparison. The consistency of that—him snapping into that assassin mode, sniper mode—is that championship DNA we want to see more of consistently. I believe he can do it.”
Coming from someone who spent nine years watching Brees carve up defenses with surgical precision, that’s not just empty locker room talk. Armstead has seen championship-level quarterbacking up close. And when he’s telling anyone that Tua possesses those same flashes of brilliance, it’s interesting. The comparison makes sense when you break it down. Both quarterbacks rely on pinpoint accuracy and reading defenses like open books, rather than trying to muscle throws through tight windows.
The elephant in the room remains Tua’s health issues, particularly those concussions that have derailed two separate seasons. But Armstead’s endorsement carries serious weight because he’s not some distant observer throwing out hot takes. He’s the guy who’s been in the trenches—literally protecting Tua’s blind side while watching him orchestrate the offense. When someone with that perspective says he’s seen championship DNA, maybe it’s time to listen!
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