CLEVELAND — Star defensive end Myles Garrett has requested a trade from the Cleveland Browns with the hope of better positioning himself to win a Super Bowl, according to a statement he sent to media outlets Monday.
The Browns finished last in the AFC North with a 3-14 record, and general manager Andrew Berry had said last week he would not trade Garrett in the offseason, saying he anticipated Garrett going directly from the Browns to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A Browns spokesman said Monday the team is not entertaining trade offers for Garrett.
Garrett is under contract with the Browns for two more seasons under a five-year, $125 million extension he signed in 2020.
“As a kid dreaming of the NFL, all I focused on was the ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl — and that goal fuels me today more than ever,” Garrett said in his statement. “My love for the community of Northeast Ohio and the incredible fanbase of the Cleveland Browns has made this one of the toughest decisions of my life. These past eight years have shaped me into the man that I am today.
“While I’ve loved calling this city my home, my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent. The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton, it has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl. With that in mind, I have requested to be traded from the Cleveland Browns.”
Garrett, the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year last season, is a finalist for the award again. His 14 sacks ranked second in the league, and he became the first player in NFL history to record 14 or more in four consecutive seasons. He holds the franchise record with 102.5 career sacks.
During preparations for the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., last week, Berry told reporters he would not trade Garrett even if a team were to offer two first-round draft picks.
“We feel really good about Myles obviously as a big piece of our future,” Berry said. “We’re looking forward to him being on the field. Like I said in my (early January) press conference, we envision him going from Cleveland to Canton when his career is over.”
Garrett has relatively low salaries the next two seasons, according to Over The Cap. He is owed about $20 million in base salary and bonus in 2025 and $25 million in 2026.
But he also carries significant dead money if Cleveland were to trade him. The Browns, who are currently projected at $30 million over the cap in 2025, would face a $36.2 million dead cap charge with a trade based on bonuses already paid to Garrett. Keeping Garrett in 2025 would result in just a $19.7 million cap charge for Cleveland.
