Dawgs By Nature
Myles Garrett rumors and trade speculation is almost overshadowing the Super Bowl this week
No matter how we got here, we got here. The Cleveland Browns are in a tough position with the best player on their roster requesting a trade. Unlike the NBA, where trade requests seem to fly at a whim, the NFL rarely sees a player of this stature openly state his desire to be elsewhere.
The Myles Garrett trade rumors, speculation and proposed deals are leading most sports programming including our site. Whether the Browns give in or not is another story but the reality of the situation is another slap in the face to fans who haven’t had it easy since The Return.
Yesterday we presented two trades, including one of Garrett, that would help Cleveland GM Andrew Berry reshape the roster. We also reviewed four trade proposals from our SB Nation home site.
None of those trades brought back the kind of value that Browns fans wanted but a review of the last five years found just 13 trades that included a first-round pick. Four of those deals included at least two first-round picks being exchanged but three were for quarterbacks (Deshaun Watson, Russell Wilson, Matthew Stafford).
(Noting it here a second time, these are just deals in the last five years so the Khalil Mack trade in 2018, when there were two firsts involved is not included.)
S Jamal Adams is the only non-quarterback in the last two years to be traded for two first-round picks in a deal that most thought was an overpay when it happened. That trade took place four years ago when Adams was just 25 years old.
With Garrett and Adams the same age, a team acquiring him would be, potentially, getting four fewer years of service and a player with some injury history to worry about as he enters his 30s late in the 2025 season.
Anything is possible but the Miami Dolphins acquiring DE Bradley Chubb is the comparable trade for Browns fans to focus on. Chubb, 26 years old at the time, was dealt along with a fifth-round pick in exchange for a 2023 first-round pick, a 2024 fourth-round pick, and running back Chase Edmonds at the 2022 NFL trade deadline.
While Garrett is a much better pass rusher than Chubb, his age and injury history could offset that slightly.
Two first-round picks (or the equivalent) are not off the board but it seems unlikely given recent trades. The problem for Garrett and Cleveland is that the team has no reason to want to trade him away without getting a great return in the deal. Garrett’s contract and the impact on the salary cap also limits the team’s motivation to make a deal.
You can review all 13 trades that included a first-round pick over the last five years to see if you think that will impact the return for Garrett.
***Do you think recent history is telling for what the Browns can get...
