From The Athletic:
I remain less than sure that the Browns could trade all-world defensive end Myles Garrett before the Nov. 5 deadline — or even before next season. Garrett is a weather-changing force who, even at 28 and in his eighth NFL season, can still deliver top-level performances for years to come.
But with each passing week, I think the Browns have to be open to discussions about Garrett’s future — both internally about where this whole thing is headed and any external offers they might receive with contending teams believing the Browns will be sellers at the deadline.
The Browns are facing a multiyear rebuild. They’re tied to around $170 million in salary-cap commitments to Watson regardless of how the team decides to alter or stretch them out. There are still eight likely Browns starters this week who are 30 or older, even after the Amari Cooper trade, and the future dead money involved with Cooper and pending moves over the coming weeks will force Cleveland to get younger and cheaper. This is what happens when an all-in season is embarrassingly over before the leaves change.
Can the Browns get a first-round pick plus more for Garrett? Sure. But trading Garrett would bring $36 million more in dead money for next year, and even getting close to a Garrett trade would require organizational continuity on how to both tear down the current roster and plot a path for the future. Saying it’s nice to have an extra late first-round pick (or picks) is one thing. Making a plan to maximize those picks is more important.
If the Browns are going to trade Garrett, they’re probably going to ask not only for multiple premium picks but potentially for a young player with multiple seasons left on his rookie contract. They’re entitled to ask for anything they want, really. But it’s still going to be difficult to find a real meeting place between what the Browns would need to actually let Garrett move on and what a team could give.
There’s also this: Would ownership even allow a Garrett trade before the deadline? The Browns are facing crucial, expensive and franchise-altering decisions on many levels in the coming months. It remains possible that the Haslam family isn’t sure who will be in charge of the roster in February and March, and that could add one extra layer of complication to potentially trading the most gifted player of the team’s new era.
Stay tuned. I’ve shifted from thinking there’s almost no way a Garrett trade happens to believing the Browns have to at least participate in the varied discussions surrounding it.
I remain less than sure that the Browns could trade all-world defensive end Myles Garrett before the Nov. 5 deadline — or even before next season. Garrett is a weather-changing force who, even at 28 and in his eighth NFL season, can still deliver top-level performances for years to come.
But with each passing week, I think the Browns have to be open to discussions about Garrett’s future — both internally about where this whole thing is headed and any external offers they might receive with contending teams believing the Browns will be sellers at the deadline.
The Browns are facing a multiyear rebuild. They’re tied to around $170 million in salary-cap commitments to Watson regardless of how the team decides to alter or stretch them out. There are still eight likely Browns starters this week who are 30 or older, even after the Amari Cooper trade, and the future dead money involved with Cooper and pending moves over the coming weeks will force Cleveland to get younger and cheaper. This is what happens when an all-in season is embarrassingly over before the leaves change.
Can the Browns get a first-round pick plus more for Garrett? Sure. But trading Garrett would bring $36 million more in dead money for next year, and even getting close to a Garrett trade would require organizational continuity on how to both tear down the current roster and plot a path for the future. Saying it’s nice to have an extra late first-round pick (or picks) is one thing. Making a plan to maximize those picks is more important.
If the Browns are going to trade Garrett, they’re probably going to ask not only for multiple premium picks but potentially for a young player with multiple seasons left on his rookie contract. They’re entitled to ask for anything they want, really. But it’s still going to be difficult to find a real meeting place between what the Browns would need to actually let Garrett move on and what a team could give.
There’s also this: Would ownership even allow a Garrett trade before the deadline? The Browns are facing crucial, expensive and franchise-altering decisions on many levels in the coming months. It remains possible that the Haslam family isn’t sure who will be in charge of the roster in February and March, and that could add one extra layer of complication to potentially trading the most gifted player of the team’s new era.
Stay tuned. I’ve shifted from thinking there’s almost no way a Garrett trade happens to believing the Browns have to at least participate in the varied discussions surrounding it.
