Andrew Berry’s phone is surely blowing up right about now.
With Myles Garrett requesting a trade from the Browns in a stunning move Monday, there’s no reason the other 31 teams are not hitting up Cleveland’s general manager.
Berry previously dismissed the idea of trading Garrett.
“I don’t want to go into contract discussions. I wouldn’t do that publicly,” Berry said recently at the Senior Bowl in Alabama, per Cleveland.com. “But I think you can assume that we do anticipate at some point doing a third contract with Myles. We want him to retire here.”
Berry and his staff reportedly have not changed their tune in the aftermath of Garrett’s request, per NFL Network, but players usually hold the cards in such situations.
If Garrett should become available, he will become a treasured commodity who can possibly swing a team’s Super Bowl chances.
Now, while each team should be in on a player of Garrett’s ilk, the reality is he doesn’t make sense for rebuilding teams and he indirectly cited his desire to win in his trade request.
So, sorry, Giants. Sorry, Jets. Sorry, Titans. Garrett isn’t a fit for your rosters.
“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,” Garrett said in his statement Monday. “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.”
Teams sometimes prefer to trade stars to the other league/conference in such situations, and there are some intriguing NFC teams that make sense.
The Lions have a championship-caliber team but defensive injuries ultimately proved too much to overcome in their playoff loss to the Commanders.
A pairing of Garrett and Aidan Hutchinson would be lethal.
The Packers have been good, not great, and know they have to add another star, and Garrett would help take their defense to the next level.
The Eagles are always active on the trade markets, but Washington is a more intriguing spot after their defense no-showed in the NFC Championship game, allowing 55 points to the Eagles.
With Jayden Daniels on a rookie deal, the Commanders can take a big swing.
If the Browns are willing to stay within the AFC, perhaps the most intriguing option would be their AFC North and in-state rival Bengals.
Cincinnati has an amazing offense but that defense provides as much resistance as a folding chair.
Pairing Trey Hendrickson with Garrett would provide an incredible pass-rushing duo that could offset the defense’s other deficiencies.
Beyond the bad blood between the franchises, though, the Bengals are notoriously cheap and may have to pay one or both of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins this offseason.
The Bills may be desperate to make a game-changing move in their quest to finally beat the Chiefs, but they may need to get creative to fix a player like Garrett into the mold.
The same potentially could be true of the Dolphins.
The Chargers and Broncos are teams on the rise that exceeded expectations this season and perhaps could see Garrett as the piece that allows them to truly challenge the Chiefs.
Garrett’s contract carries cap hits of $19.7 million and $20.4 million over the next two seasons and has a 2026 option bonus of $23.7 million, according to Spotrac.
