Browns trade Myles Garrett to Rams in blockbuster deal

The Rams landed the league’s most disruptive pass rusher in Myles Garrett, sending Jared Verse and a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick to Cleveland in a deal that instantly redrew the Super Bowl map. Garrett, 30, left the Browns after posting an NFL-record 23 sacks in 2025 and winning his second AP Defensive Player of the Year award, giving Los Angeles the kind of front-line star it has been willing to chase when the reward looks like another championship.

The trade only happened after Garrett waived the no-trade clause in the four-year, $160 million extension he signed with Cleveland. Unlike last year, Garrett did not request a move, but the relationship had clearly reached a point where the Browns were willing to act. Cleveland also drew a hard line on the return: Jared Verse had to be included, making the second-year edge rusher the key concession that unlocked the deal.

For the Rams, the move fits a familiar front office pattern. Los Angeles has never been shy about spending future resources when it believes a title is available, and this swap echoes the all-in approach that once brought Matthew Stafford to the organization and ended with a Super Bowl title. The team later reworked Garrett’s contract, another sign that the Rams were prepared to absorb the financial strain to secure a player who can change how Chris Shula deploys his defense.

The biggest ripple may be in Philadelphia, where Garrett’s name immediately pulled Jalen Carter into the conversation. But the noise overstated how close the Eagles were to landing him. Cleveland did not seriously engage Philadelphia before finalizing the Rams deal, which means the Eagles never had the inside track many assumed they did. That matters in a league that prizes timing as much as talent: Philadelphia is still dangerous, but Los Angeles now owns the more dramatic edge-rushing swing.

Cleveland, meanwhile, chose a long-view return over a shorter competitive window. Verse gives the Browns an immediate defensive starter, and the three draft picks stretch through 2029, a staggered haul that could reshape both the roster and the salary structure over several seasons. The Browns moved a 30-year-old pass rusher coming off a historic season, but they also took a clear step away from the kind of veteran star-driven push that defined Garrett’s best years in Cleveland. The message is unmistakable: the Browns are trading present certainty for future flexibility, while the Rams are betting another bold swing can still buy a championship.