Something has to give in the standoff between the Cleveland Browns and pass-rusher Myles Garrett.
Garrett has requested a trade out of Cleveland, but the Browns are adamant that something can be worked out with the star pass-rusher. Garrett, 29, has reportedly told Cleveland he is not open to a contract extension with the team.
The Browns are not budging on Garrett now, but two insiders reported on Sunday that the Buffalo Bills are expected to pursue the pass-rusher if Cleveland decides to listen to offers.
Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline reported on Sunday that he was told the Bills are expected to put in a bid for Myles Garrett.
I mentioned the Buffalo Bills as a team targeting edge rusher Preston Smith several days ago. I’m told the Bills will also put in a bid for Myles Garrett in the hopes they could pry the pass rusher away from the Cleveland Browns. Garrett has requested a trade from the team.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano also reported the latest on Garrett on Sunday. Although he said that the Browns are telling teams there is no conversation to be had about potentially acquiring Garrett, Graziano listed the Bills and Eagles as two teams he expects to be “most aggressive” for Garrett.
Here’s what Graziano said about Garrett.
Teams that have checked in with the Browns about edge rusher Myles Garrett are still being told there’s no conversation to be had. The Browns continue to insist they won’t trade Garrett, and functionally they’d have a really hard time doing so prior to June 1 anyway. A trade would jump his 2025 cap number from its current $19.7 million to a dead-money charge of $36.2 million. Waiting until after June 1 would allow the Browns to spread that charge out over two seasons.
The best solution for Cleveland remains working something out to make Garrett happy and keep him in the fold, but he has so far been adamant that’s not possible. The Browns may not feel compelled to honor Garrett’s trade request until they become convinced he won’t play for them, and it’s going to be hard for him to convince them of that before they get to the regular season and see whether he’s truly willing to miss real games. If the Browns do ever get serious about trading Garrett, I’d expect Buffalo and Philadelphia to be two of the most aggressive pursuers.
Garrett has recorded double-digit sack totals in every season since 2018. The 2023 Defensive Player of the Year and six-time All-Pro has recorded 60 sacks in the past four seasons and 102.5 total sacks in his career.
Buffalo’s pass rush has been invisible in meaningful postseason games over the past few seasons and is a big reason why they have not been able to get beyond the AFC Championship Game. Adding a game wrecker like Garrett would be worth every penny and draft pick needed to acquire the pass-rusher if the Browns end up shopping Garrett.
