Cleveland Browns Trade Two-Time Defensive Player of the Year to the Los Angeles Rams
The Cleveland Browns have agreed to trade Myles Garrett, the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, to the Los Angeles Rams. In exchange, the Browns will receive Jared Verse and the Rams' 2027 first-round pick, along with other draft compensation under discussion by both sides. In the end, Browns fans were ultimately right to be concerned about the departure of ‘Big Foot’, as he now resides on the West Coast. This deal was set to happen sooner or later, as trade speculation around Garrett had been piling up week after week as he had yet to meet with new head coach Todd Monken. The timing of the trade happening on June 1st is no coincidence, as Cleveland is now off the hook entirely for the 30-year-old’s four-year, $160 million contract.
The Rams may now be the favorites to win Super Bowl 61, as the NFC Championship runner-ups now boast the man who just set the all-time single-season sacks record. Since being drafted with the first overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Garrett has been a game-breaker every step of the way. The Texas native is third among all active players in sacks with over 125 and has taken home the DPOY award twice in his illustrious career. The Rams defense has been incredibly potent since they won the Super Bowl in the 2021-2022 season, but they ranked towards the bottom of yards allowed last season. With Garrett now on the roster and a contract extension handed out to the reigning MVP winner, Matthew Stafford, expectations are at an all-time high for coach Sean McVay and the Rams. If the result at the end of the upcoming season is anything less than a Super Bowl win or appearance, the season will be viewed as a failure, especially if Verse continues to develop in Cleveland.
Speaking of Verse, the 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year will now return to his native state of Ohio. The former Florida State Seminole has dominated in his first two seasons, pulling in 12 sacks, 124 combined tackles, and five forced fumbles. Cleveland’s defense now boasts the last two winners of the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, pairing Verse up with Carson Schwesinger in the linebacker core. Defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg will likely look to those two as the captains of the defense in 2026, and speaking of expectations, Verse now has the undesirable position of trying to fill Garrett’s shoes. If the Rams do end up winning the Super Bowl, and Garrett excels while Verse does not, then this will be another blunder in the long line of failures in Browns history.
