Rams News: Myles Garrett Headed to Los Angeles in One of the Biggest Defensive Trades in NFL History
The Cleveland Browns have agreed to trade two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for pass rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a 2029 third-round pick, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, and Tom Pelissero. The trade was finalized on June 1, the earliest date the deal could become financially feasible for the Browns.
For Garrett, it ends a nine-year tenure in Cleveland. The 30-year-old broke the NFL’s single-season sack record in 2025 with 23, surpassing the 22.5 shared by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt, and was the unanimous winner of the AP Defensive Player of the Year award, his second such honor, having also won it in 2023. He received all 50 first-place votes. In nine seasons with the Browns, Garrett accumulated 125.5 career sacks, appeared in 133 games, and became the only player in league history to record at least 12 sacks in six consecutive seasons.
The Browns’ decision to deal their franchise cornerstone accelerated after the club quietly modified Garrett’s contract in March, restructuring the timing of his option bonus payment from 15 days after the new league year to seven days before the regular season. The move reduced the dead-cap hit from $64.5 million to a more manageable split figure post-June 1, effectively opening the door for Monday’s trade.
For the Rams, the move is the latest and largest in a series of aggressive offseason swings. In March, Los Angeles acquired two-time All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie from the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for four draft picks, including the 29th overall pick in the 2026 draft, and immediately signed him to a four-year, $124 million extension, making him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history. Adding Garrett to a defense that already features McDuffie and a young pass-rush core gives Los Angeles one of the most formidable defensive rosters the league has seen in years.
The backdrop for all of it is SoFi Stadium. Super Bowl LXI is set to be played in Inglewood this February, in the same building where the Rams won Super Bowl LVI. With reigning NFL MVP Matthew Stafford signed through the season on a $55 million extension, the Rams are operating on a familiar timetable: win now, worry later.
Verse, 25, is heading to Cleveland, entering his third NFL season. A first-round pick in 2024 out of Florida State, he earned back-to-back Pro Bowl selections and posted 7.5 sacks with 58 total tackles and three forced fumbles in 2025. He gives the Browns a young, ascending pass rusher to build around as the organization restarts its rebuild.
“We recognize the unexpected nature of this trade,” Browns general manager Andrew Berry said in a statement, “but it opens up great opportunities for our franchise.”