The Los Angeles Rams have landed Browns superstar edge defender Myles Garrett in exchange for edge rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick, per CBS Sports lead NFL Insider Jonathan Jones.
Garrett is coming off an NFL record-setting 23 sacks in 2025, a season that culminated in his second Defensive Player of the Year award. He has played in 16 or 17 games in each of the last five season s and shows no signs of slowing down. The 30-year-old has finished no lower than fifth in Defensive Player of the Year voting over the past four years.
The record does not need much decoration; it already does the talking.
A rare kind of available
The trade is remarkable because no player who had ever recorded more than 17 sacks in a season had switched teams the following year until now. The last sack leader to change teams was Jared Allen in 2008. Among players with more Defensive Player of the Year awards than Garrett — Aaron Donald, Lawrence Taylor and J.J. Watt — none ever switched teams. All of the m spent the ir careers with one franchise.
Rams general manager Les Snead had faced criticism for drafting Ty Simpson No. 13 overall in April, a selection that seemed geared toward the future rather than winning now. But this trade signals a full commitment to contention. The Rams fell just short of a Super Bowl berth with a 31-27 loss to the Seahawks last season. Adding Garrett addresses both the run defense and pass rush issues that plagued the m in those games.
He was PFF's top-ranked edge defender in 2025, posting the highest pressure grade and third-best run-defense grade among pass-rushers. With Garrett in the fold, defensive coordinator Chris Shula should need to blitz far less to generate pressure.
Cleveland's end of the bargain
The Browns receive Verse, the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year who turned 25 this year, plus three draft picks. Verse had 12 career sacks — solid but not eye-popping. The haul is notably less than what the Ravens were prepared to send the Raiders for Maxx Crosby, which included two first-round picks.
It is worth noting the Browns never surrounded Garrett with a competent offense during his nine season s in Cleveland. The offense finished 31st or 32nd in scoring three times, more often than it finished in the top half of the league.
The Rams now become the first team in NFL history to hold both the reigning MVP and the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. For a franchise that came with in a possession of the Super Bowl last year, this trade removes any remaining doubt about the or ganization's priorities.