Myles Garrett trade winners and losers: How Rams gain is Shedeur Sanders' pain

Nate Davis, USA TODAY Mon, June 1, 2026 at 7:41 PM UTC

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Just when you thought the NFL's (alleged) offseason was about to quiet down − at least once the anticipated trade of Philadelphia Eagles WR A.J. Brown materialized − a rare June bombshell drops out of the sky. And that's exactly what happened on Monday, June 1, when the Cleveland Brownsagreed to trade two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams. In one of the league's biggest blockbusters in recent years, the Browns will recoup pass rusher Jared Verse, the Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2024, a first-round pick in the vaunted 2027 NFL Draft plus two additional Day 2 picks (a second-rounder in 2028 and third-rounder in '29).

It's a lot to sift through, but this NFL strainer will produce winners and losers that extend far beyond L.A. and Cleveland, so let's get to them:

WINNERSMyles Garrett on the field

Coming off a season in which he produced a single-season record 23 sacks − and for a bad Browns team that was hardly forcing its opponents to routinely emphasize the pass − the man who is arguably the NFL's most dominant player will finally get to play in relevant football games. Great as Garrett, 30, is and has been for the duration of a nine-year career that began when he was drafted No. 1 overall in 2017, he's never been a fixture in prime-time games and has only appeared in three postseason contests (one of them a win). Finally, a player who was already on track to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer will get the opportunity to cement his legacy by chasing a bronze bust and a sterling silver Lombardi Trophy.

Myles Garrett off the field

Leaving "The Land" for Hollywood could also set Garrett up for quite the post-NFL career. He's a bright guy with an array of off-field interests, plus business acumen − including a minority ownership stake in the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers. Yet Garrett's comic book-adjacent physique alone might be enough to start earning him auditions and maybe roles in action films. At the bare minimum, expect a higher Q rating and much heavier flow of endorsement opportunities.

Los Angeles Rams

A highly active offseason that had probably already rendered them Super Bowl 61 favorites now nets them the league's most intimidating defender. Garrett comes aboard with other defensive reinforcements, namely former Kansas City Chiefs CBs Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, to further fortify a defense that buckled down the stretch last season − and twice against the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.

Ty Simpson

The Rams' highly parsed first-round draft pick and presumed successor to QB Matthew Stafford can now quietly recede into the background − maybe for years − without being saddled with a label that his arrival somehow equated to the opportunity cost of further loading up for an all-out Super Bowl run.

Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson and Aaron Rodgers

"Peace, Myles."

LOSERSSam Darnold and Brock Purdy

"Damn."

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Ty Simpson

Seriously, pal, we may not hear from you for years. If this team coalesces into the juggernaut it should be while allowing Stafford to routinely hand off in clock-killing, fourth-quarter drives while conserving his 38-year-old arm, why would he walk away his own opportunity to continue recasting himself as a lock for Canton? Aaron Rodgers sat behind Brett Favre for three years before getting his shot to start − might want to get his number, Ty.

Los Angeles Rams

Literally Super Bowl or bust for this team. Merely playing on Super Sunday in SoFi Stadium to cap the 2026 campaign won't be sufficient without the trophy. Pressure's on − and ratched way up − fellas.

Jared Verse

Sorry, dude. The Dayton, Ohio, native's pro career had gotten off to a really nice start. But six decades of evidence suggest he could be playing the remainder of it in the relative anonymity of Cleveland.

Maxx Crosby

Sorry, dude. Whatever the NFL equivalent of PTSD is must be kicking in as you remain marooned with the Las Vegas Raiders − after that infamous trip to Baltimore in March − and prepare to continue toiling for a loser, as your pass-rushing peer Garrett had for most of his career.

Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson

As they continue vying for the Browns' 2026 QB1 job ... they can pretty much rest assured they're keeping it warm for the guy who gets drafted in next year's first round now that GM Andrew Berry has the draft capital to more effectively target the future face of the franchise he might covet next spring.

CLEVELAND, OHIO - AUGUST 23: Quarterback Shedeur Sanders #12 talks to defensive end Myles Garrett #95 of the Cleveland Browns before an NFL Preseason 2025 against the Los Angeles Rams at Huntington Bank Field on August 23, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)New York Jets

Scheduled to pick three times in Round 1 of the 2027 draft, it appeared they could leverage a large amount of control over what appears to be a QB-rich proceeding – especially after no ’27 first-round picks exchanged hands during this year’s draft. But the Browns are now the clear fly in the Gang Green ointment as these quarterback-deficient teams begin their jockeying for Arch Manning, Dante Moore or CJ Carr well ahead of next spring’s bounty.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson are losers of Myles Garrett trade. Who won?

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