In between the Panthers' decision to reject a Brian Burns offer and the Chiefs' call to accept a Trent McDuffie proposal, the Rams actually refrained from blockbuster buyer's trades for an extended period. The Sean McVay-Les Snead operation remained patient from 2023-25 and even made a first-round pick. That draftee is now headed to Cleveland after one of the NFL's biggest win-now transactions this century.
The McVay-era Rams have a few such moves on that short list. Their Matthew Stafford and Jalen Ramsey additions certainly meet the criteria. But it can be argued the team's Monday decision -- to trade Jared Verse and three draft choices to the Browns for Myles Garrett -- creates the strongest roster in Los Angeles' "eff them picks" era. Garrett joins McDuffie and Jaylen Watson as high-profile additions to a team that would have been a Super Bowl frontrunner without any of those moves.
On a June NFL day that reminded of the 2000s and prior eras -- when teams needed to wait until June 1 for cuts dividing cap savings over two years -- the long-rumored A.J. Brown-to-New England trade was somehow upstaged. Ditto Russell Wilson's CBS move and Odell Beckham Jr.'s Giants homecoming. The Rams have hijacked a few news cycles with trades during the Snead years, but Garrett is the most accomplished player the team has acquired during this explosive period.
As the Rams went a whole two seasons without rostering a surefire Hall of Famer on defense, their post-Aaron Donald chapter now includes one of the greatest edge rushers in NFL history. A host of storylines emerge after the Browns cashed out on the reigning Defensive Player of the Year.
Browns circle back on Garrett trade, sell high
