In February 2025, Myles Garrett requested a trade from the Cleveland Browns.
“While I’ve loved calling this city my home, my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent,” Garrett, 30, wrote at the time. The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton; it has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl. With that in mind, I have requested to be traded from the Cleveland Browns.”
One month later, Garrett signed a four-year contract extension with the Browns that made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history at the time.
So, Garrett set aside his burning desire to play meaningful football and played in Cleveland last season. The Browns went 5-12, but Garrett made history in a Browns uniform — setting the NFL’s all-time single-season sack record with 23 sacks in what would be his final season with the franchise that drafted him first overall in 2017.
Now, Garrett gets to take his $160 million with him to Los Angeles and finally compete for that Super Bowl.
Maybe patience really is a virtue.
On Monday, the Browns traded Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for edge rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round draft pick, a 2028 second-round draft pick, and a 2029 third-round draft pick. Later that night, Garrett posted a lengthy farewell letter to Cleveland and Browns fans. By Tuesday, he was in Los Angeles and addressed his new fan base.
“Rams Nation, so excited to be here,” Garrett said in a video posted by the Rams. “So excited to be in this city and play with this team. Very excited to play for a championship here at the end of the year. Let’s go.”
The Rams became Super Bowl favorites after trading for then-Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie in March, and acquiring Garrett made them overwhelming favorites. Somehow, it’s become old news this offseason that the Rams also employ the reigning NFL MVP, quarterback Matthew Stafford, who led the league’s most prolific offense in 2025.
But while Snead’s aggressive nature is how Garrett landed in L.A., Stafford is why.
“We feel really fortunate that this feels very similar when we were fortunate enough to be able to acquire a player like Matthew Stafford,” McVay said at Garrett’s Rams introductory presser. “Things like this don’t present themselves, and we wanted to be aggressive.”
In January 2021, the Rams acquired Stafford from the Detroit Lions. The ensuing season, the Rams won Super Bowl LVI in their home SoFi Stadium. The closest they’ve come since was reaching the NFC Championship Game last season, where they fell short against the eventual champion Seattle Seahawks.
Stafford is entering his age-38 season, which means there’s a one- or two-year win-now window looming over Los Angeles. The Rams have gone all in on winning another Super Bowl at SoFi next February.
Garrett departs the Browns as the franchise’s all-time leader in sacks (125.5), quarterback hits (239), and tackles for loss (149).
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