The NFL already considered the Rams must-see TV in 2026. That’s likely becoming even more true after the team closed in on a blockbuster trade Monday for Browns star defensive end Myles Garrett.
According to multiple reports, Los Ángeles has agreed to send pass rusher Jared Verse, a first-round draft pick in 2027, a second-rounder in 2028, and a third-rounder in 2029 in return for Garrett, a two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, including last season in a unanimous vote.
The deal, one of the biggest swaps of a defensive player in league history, further heralds the Rams as not only a win-now team but also one that will be a fixture on national television in 2026.
TV Darlings
The Rams were slated for seven primetime games when the NFL released the regular-season schedule last month, more than any other team and tying a league record. The factors in that strategy were rather straightforward. Los Angeles is the No. 2 media market, and the Rams currently hold the best odds to win Super Bowl LXI of any NFL team—and by a considerable margin over runners-up such as the Ravens, Bills, and defending champion Seahawks.
That upcoming title game, meanwhile, will be played at the Rams’ home venue, SoFi Stadium, and the team would very much like to be there—just as they were for Super Bowl LVI in 2022.
The team’s primetime slate also includes the NFL’s first regular-season game in Australia, a newly created Thanksgiving Eve contest, and a Christmas night clash against top NFC West divisional rival Seattle. With Garrett in the fold, additional showcases are possible through flex scheduling.
Loading Up
Garrett set the NFL’s all-time single-season sack record last year with 23 and carries a $23.5 million salary-cap hit for the Rams. His contract runs through the 2030 season.
The Garrett deal also follows a recent $55 million contract extension between the Rams and star quarterback Matthew Stafford, last year’s NFL MVP. In so doing, the Rams are set to become the first team in NFL history to have both the reigning MVP and Defensive Player of the Year.
Other Side of the Coin
For the Browns, meanwhile, the departure of Garrett further signals another likely rebuilding era unfolding for the long-suffering franchise.
Cleveland undoubtedly gets younger and cheaper in the move, but the team also is still looking up in the AFC North division that has the Ravens and Bengals with Super Bowl aspirations and a Steelers team that hasn’t had a losing season since 2003. Next year’s incoming draft pick likely will be toward the end of the first round, unless the upcoming Rams season goes horribly awry.
The Browns retooled leadership somewhat after the 2025 regular season, hiring new head coach Todd Monken in January, but he has not had any face-to-face meetings with Garrett since then.
Cleveland, meanwhile, recently broke ground on a planned domed stadium and mixed-use development being built in suburban Brook Park, Ohio. That facility is slated to open in 2029, and barring some kind of shocking return by Garrett before then, he won’t be part of that.
More Big News
On a busy day across the NFL, the defending AFC champion Patriots also acquired wide receiver A.J. Brown in a trade wth the Eagles. Philadelphia will receive a first-round draft pick in 2028 and a fifth-round pick in 2027 for the three-time Pro Bowler.
The deal reunites Brown with Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, as they were previously together in Tennessee. The move also represents something of a vindication for reporter Dianna Russini, formerly with The Athletic, who suggested months ago a move of Brown to the Patriots. Russini, of course, has since been the center of a personal scandal involving Vrabel.
