The Washington Commanders entered free agency with as much money to spend as almost any team in the NFL, and despite adding thee edge-rushers to turn one of their biggest weaknesses into a possible strength, the franchise is among the top candidates to make a blockbuster trade for Cleveland Browns superstar Myles Garrett.
Garrett’s potential trade availability become a major topic of discussion after Field Yates of ESPN reported on Wednesday, March 25 that the Browns had changed the contract language on Garrett’s $160 million extension.
Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated contended on Thursday that dealing Garrett makes sense in Cleveland and named the Commanders among a handful of top potential suitors for his services.
“Washington finished last season as a middle-tier success rate team and signed Charles Omenihu, Odafe Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson in free agency, reflecting the team’s lack of depth at the position,” Orr wrote. “Perhaps the presence of multiple edge-rushing options would attract the now 30-year-old Garrett, who may want to end his career as a player with more help than he had in Cleveland, where he was almost solely responsible for QB havoc over the past decade.”
“The Commanders have the cap space and, like the [Chicago] Bears and [New England] Patriots, should be thinking strategically about how to allocate excess funds while [quarterback] Jayden Daniels is on the remainder of his rookie contract,” Orr continued.
NFL Insiders, Analysts at Odds Over Whether Browns Looking to Trade Myles Garrett This Offseason
GettyDefensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Thursday that the Browns are not interested in trading Garrett, despite the widespread speculation to the contrary.
“The option bonuses were moved every year in the contract, so it wasn’t just this year. So, could there be a point in two or three years when it’s easier to trade him? Yes, absolutely,” Schefter told the Pat McAfee Show. “But the Browns say, ‘We’re not trading him.’ That’s all I can tell you.”
Sam Monson, a pro football analyst formerly of Pro Football Focus, took Schefter’s point, but added a caveat of his own.
“The Browns don’t plan on trading Garrett … right now,” Monson wrote on an X repost of Schefter’s comments. “But I think it’s accurate to say that the only possible benefit of this move is to make it easier to trade Myles Garrett … at some point.”
Myles Garrett, by Definition, Best Defensive Player in NFL Heading into Next Season
GettyDefensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns.
Garrett earned the second Defensive Player of the Year Award of his nine-year NFL career last season, this time by a unanimous decision.
He did so on the strength of setting the league’s single-season record with 23 sacks in 2025, while also leading the league with 33 tackles for loss.
Garrett will turn 31 years old late next season and is under contract through the 2030 campaign. He has earned seven Pro-Bowl nods and seven first-team All-Pro selections since Cleveland made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft.
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