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Myles Garrett Requests a Trade | Possible Landing Spots Include New England, San Francisco, Detroit, Washington, Philadelphia and Elsewhere

Analyzing Myles Garrett, his contract and some teams that might be interested in him after he requested a trade on Monday.

Morgan Rode Feb 3rd 12:53 PM EST.

Dec 8, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) is chased by Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images
Dec 8, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) is chased by Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

The couple recent NBA trades were the big headlines in the sports world over the weekend. The trade deadline this week should be fun, but it was always going to be drowned out by Super Bowl coverage.

The NBA’s time in the limelight was cut even shorter than expected after Cleveland’s Myles Garrett requested a trade on Monday.

Let’s look at how Garrett has performed over the years, and what teams could be interested in him.

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Garrett’s Numbers

Garrett is a 29-year-old elite pass rusher, and has been for years.

In eight seasons, Garrett has 102.5 sacks in 117 games played. He also has 352 total tackles, with 116 going for losses. Garrett has 20 forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries and 17 passes defensed.

There were some durability issues early in his career, but he’s played in at least 16 games in four straight seasons. Garrett has at least 10 sacks in every season since his rookie one. He’s simply one of the best pass rushers in the game, and that also makes him a good IDP option if you play in those fantasy leagues.

Garrett’s Contract

Garrett is in the midst of a five-year deal with Cleveland. He has two years left on the deal.

His cap hit is a little over 19.7 million for 2025, and then he has a $20.3 million cap hit in 2026. That is a pretty reasonable number for a top-end talent like Garrett.

That means that Garrett is a sought-after player, and one several teams should be interested in acquiring.

Nov 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) celebrates after a play during the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at Huntington Bank Field. Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Nov 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) celebrates after a play during the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at Huntington Bank Field. Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Teams That Could Target Garrett

Every team in the NFL should be interested in acquiring Garrett. Of course, he’s likely going to want to play for a contender, and the team is going to want to sign him to a long-term deal, so there’s several teams who are likely out of the Garrett sweepstakes.

Using cap numbers from Spotrac, I’m going to identify several teams who might be interested in Garrett.

The first one is the New England Patriots. They have the most cap space in the NFL and have the room to go after stars like Garrett.

New England has also had a good defensive reputation, and as Drake Maye" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#player-pop-up" href="/nfl_player_news/Drake_Maye/">Drake Maye is on his rookie deal, it makes sense to stack the defense to help the team out overall. 

Of course, the Patriots might also use all that cap space on offensive players, but with the defensive-minded Mike Vrabel now leading the charge, I’m sure he’d love to get a star pass rusher like Garrett.

New England isn’t a contender at this point, but with good draft capital (for now) and cap space, they could vault themselves into the picture. That should appeal to Garrett.

The Chicago Bears could also use a pass rusher, and have the cap space to make this work.

It’s a similar situation to New England, with a young Caleb Williams" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#player-pop-up" href="/nfl_player_news/Caleb_Williams/">Caleb Williams leading the offense. The Bears’ offense has plenty of offensive talent in place, so adding to the defense makes even more sense.

Chicago is also trying to keep pace with the rest of the NFC North, and this would absolutely help them out a bit.

The San Francisco 49ers could join the sweepstakes too. That should be absolutely terrifying for the rest of the NFL, especially when it looked like the Niners might have seen their run of success come to an end.

Can you imagine a pass-rushing duo of Garrett and Nick Bosa led by new defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. A move like this could get the Niners right back into Super Bowl contention in 2025-26.

The Arizona Cardinals also have the cap space to make this possible. They also have a need for a pass rusher.

Arizona is close enough to playoff contention that it should appeal to Garrett. It’s not the most fun destination for the NFL world, but on an up-and-coming team, Garrett could take the Cardinals over the hump.

The Los Angeles Chargers could also be in the mix, especially if they do not retain Khalil Mack.

This hypothetical trade makes all the sense in the world, so naturally, it would make sense to see the Chargers nowhere near these sweepstakes. Seriously though, getting Garrett in Los Angeles is a real possibility, and makes a ton of sense.

The Green Bay Packers could also make a splash and go after Garrett. 

The Pack has a need for a pass rusher, and with a pretty young team otherwise, they have room to make a move for an elite talent. Signing him long term might be a little more tricky, and could handcuff the team from locking down its younger talent, but Green Bay is also close enough to the Super Bowl to maybe go all in and figure everything else out later.

With the draft in Green Bay this year, imagine the move happening during the opening round. The NFL world would break the internet.

The Detroit Lions are yet another NFC North team with the cap space and need to chase Garrett.

There’s question marks surrounding Aidan Hutchinson now, but if he comes back healthy and has Garrett opposite him… look out. The Lions also have shown a tendency to be aggressive, so this kind of trade would be right up their alley.

The Washington Commanders are another fun thought for a landing spot for Garrett.

They have the young quarterback (Jayden Daniels" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#player-pop-up" href="/nfl_player_news/Jayden_Daniels/">Jayden Daniels) under contract, so now is the time to add a bunch of top-end talent and chase a title. After nearly getting to the Super Bowl this past season, this kind of move could make the Commanders the frontrunners in the NFC for next season.

They have plenty of cap space and assets to play with too, so this is definitely doable. I wonder how many top-end players are actively trying to play for Washington though.

Things would be tight with the cap, but the Philadelphia Eagles could probably make this work.

I think the result of the Super Bowl could dictate how the Eagles approach the situation. If they top the Chiefs, I think the Eagles are more likely to keep building through the draft than spend big to go get an elite talent. If they lose to Kansas City, a big splash for Garrett seems very reasonable for Philly.

The Minnesota Vikings have enough cap space to chase Garrett as well.

I wouldn’t say pass rusher is their biggest need, but again, no NFL team should be turning their head on possibly adding Garrett. A trade for Garrett probably means the Vikings go with J.J. McCarthy" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#player-pop-up" href="/nfl_player_news/J.J._McCarthy/">J.J. McCarthy in 2025-26 though, and would Garrett want to be involved with that?

The Cincinnati Bengals have some cap space, but they also have top-end free agents they would like to keep. Adding Garrett would mean Tee Higgins probably leaves. 

I like the idea of the Bengals prioritizing defense over offense, but you have to make the quarterback happy, and retaining Higgins is going to make Joe Burrow happy. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind having Garrett and Trey Hendrickson chasing opposing quarterbacks around though.

The Pittsburgh Steelers definitely do not need pass rush help, but just imagine Garrett and T.J. Watt as a 1-2 punch.

They have the cap space for now to make this happen. I think getting a long-term option at quarterback, and more offensive firepower in general should be higher priorities than adding a pass rusher though.

The Denver Broncos could also probably make Garrett’s contract work.

They have the young quarterback (Bo Nix" data-toggle="modal" data-target="#player-pop-up" href="/nfl_player_news/Bo_Nix/">Bo Nix) and a young-and-upcoming team. Adding Garrett would give the defense a boost, and give the Broncos a much better chance to make a postseason run in the years to come.

I personally think Denver needs help elsewhere, but it also wouldn’t shock me to see the Broncos at least involved here.

One final team where Garrett could work is with the Los Angeles Rams.

They have the cap space to make this work, and if the team feels close enough to a Super Bowl title, why not go all in? They did it just a few years ago, and so I wouldn’t put it past them.

FantasySP will cover Garrett more in depth when/if a trade is made, so be sure to check back for that!

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