The Cleveland Browns are facing another consequence for their decision to trade three first-round picks and more for Deshaun Watson. The Browns moved on from Baker Mayfield and gave the controversial quarterback a five-year guaranteed contract worth $230 million.
The Browns made the playoffs once since the trade, and that was in 2023 when Joe Flacco led the team to a wild card appearance after Watson suffered a season-ending injury midseason.
The disappointment of the Watson era has another star looking to leave Cleveland.
Myles Garrett requested a trade from the Cleveland Browns
Per a statement published by the NFL Network‘s Ian Rapoport, Garrett requested a trade from the Browns.
“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 wrote. “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.”
Per Rapoport, the Browns have no plans to trade their No. 1 pick in the 2017 draft.
“Cleveland has been made aware of Myles Garrett’s trade request,” Rapoport posted on X. “The team’s stance has not changed. Teams, of course, will call on a superstar in his prime.”
Cleveland has been made aware of Myles Garrett’s trade request. The team’s stance has not changed.
Teams, of course, will call on a superstar in his prime. https://t.co/bCMaTNIvNc
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 3, 2025
Garrett, a native of Arlington, Texas, has spent his entire career with the Browns. At 29, the star pass rusher won NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2023, has earned All-Pro honors six times, and has made six Pro Bowl appearances.
Garrett has recorded 352 tackles, 102.5 sacks, and 20 forced fumbles in his career.
Garrett hasn’t won enough after the Deshaun Watson trade
Since the Texas A&M standout has been in the league, the Browns have made just three playoff appearances. Cleveland’s lone postseason win with Garrett came during the 2020 playoffs in a 48-37 victory on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the wild card round before they would lose 22-17 to the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium the next week in the divisional round.
Mayfield was the starting quarterback for that win.
The Browns are stuck with the second-highest cap hit for Watson for the next two seasons. With Watson healing from an Achilles injury in 2024 and not really playing well before the injury, Cleveland could take a quarterback in April’s draft.
Garrett doesn’t want to stick around for another rebuild after the Browns trade for Watson failed to produce meaningful wins for Cleveland.
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