As the 3-11 Cleveland Browns move through another disappointing season, defensive end Myles Garrett seems to be losing some faith.
Garrett, who has spent eight seasons with the Browns, has been committed to staying loyal to Cleveland. But for the first time, the five-time Pro Bowler seemed open to the possibility of joining a team with a larger level of success.
When asked whether it was more important to him to finish his career in Cleveland or to play on a Super Bowl contender, Garrett took a long pause before saying that he wants to be a situation where he is winning more.
“First of all I want to win, and want the Browns to be able to put me and us in a position to win,” Garrett told reporters. “I’m not trying to rebuild. I’m trying to win right now. And I want that to be apparent when the season’s over and we have those discussions. I want them to be able to illuminate, illustrate that for me so that can be something I can see in the near future. Because that’s all we want to do.
Garrett was drafted by the Browns in 2017, and has spent his entire career there. He signed a five-year, $125 million extension with the Browns in 2020, re-upping his commitment to the team. However, although Garrett said that he would like to stay with Cleveland long-term, it will depend on what the team can do for him.
“I want to stay loyal to a team that showed loyalty to me and faith in me by drafting me, but we have to do, at the end of the day, what’s best for us,” Garrett added on Friday.
Garrett, who has two years remaining on his contract with the Browns, is currently in the peak of his career. He has 31 solo tackles, 11 sacks and three forced fumbles so far this season, and has been a bright spot for the Browns in 2024. He is the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year and is tied for fourth-most tackles for loss in the league this year.
Throughout the season, Garrett has maintained that he wants to stay in Cleveland, including as recently as last week. “I want to be here, and I’ll be happy to play for Cleveland,” Garrett told reporters last Friday. “We all gotta be heading in the right direction, we all gotta be on the same page. Until then, I’m gonna be here, happily playing for the team that drafted me.”
But that sense of being on the same page might be shifting. The Browns lost 21-7 at home against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, bringing the team to 3-11 and reinforcing another lost season.
Part of the issue is Cleveland’s historically large, full-guaranteed $230 million contract with quarterback Deshaun Watson, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in October. Watson’s contract has been a massive bet that has decidedly not paid off, and has instead hobbled the team financially.
Cleveland has three games remaining in the season, with a matchup against in-state rival Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Based on what he has said, Garrett seems likely to weigh the possibility of leaving once the season ends, or at least have some real conversations with the Browns about their plans to do better next year.
