Myles Garrett set the NFL record with 23 sacks last season, but he won’t be satisfied until he has the career sack record as well.
Garrett said after the Browns traded him to the Rams this week that he’s friendly with Hall of Fame defensive end Bruce Smith and would love to break Smith’s NFL record of 200 career sacks.
“There’s a big goal out there, that’s 200,” Garrett said in an interview with the Rams’ YouTube channel. “I want to eclipse that, or I want to make it close. I have a good relationship with the guy who has that record, and being able to go get that one would mean a lot to myself, and to him as well.”
The 30-year-old Garrett has 125.5 sacks so far in his career. Smith had 106 sacks at the same age, so Garrett is well ahead of Smith’s pace. But Smith played until he was 40 years old, something not many players can do. So catching Smith won’t be easy for Garrett.
Garrett made clear that he’d love to be known as the greatest pass rusher of all time, but he’d love even more to win a Super Bowl.
“The GOAT talk and all that, I’m sure that will come and go along the way, but I want to win,” Garrett said. “I want to win early and often.”
The Rams’ trade for Myles Garrett on Monday made the reigning Defensive Player of the Year the NFC West’s problem.
While the other three teams in the AFC North were celebrating, the 49ers, Cardinals and Seahawks were already watching film on the Rams’ new edge rusher.
49ers left tackle Trent Williams was asked about Garrett joining the Rams and summed things up for the rest of the entire division.
“It sucks,” Williams said to laughter, via video from the team.
In the 49ers’ 26-8 win over the Browns last season, Garrett had a sack and three quarterback hits. He did not have a sack and only one quarterback hit in the Browns’ 19-17 victory over the 49ers in 2023.
Garrett, 30, set the NFL single-season sacks record last season with 23 and has 125.5 for his career.
Yes, the Rams and defensive end Myles Garrett have a new deal.
As mentioned earlier, it’s a five-year contract, covering 2026 through 2030. It replaces the deal Garrett had signed in 2025 with the Browns, adding no new years.
Here are the full terms, per a source with knowledge of the contract:
1. Signing bonus: $35.7 million.
2. 2026 base salary: $1.3 million, fully guaranteed.
3. 2027 option bonus: $30.145 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027.
4. 2027 base salary: $1.345 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027.
5. 2027 per-game roster bonus: $510,000 total, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027 (but must be earned).
6. 2028 option bonus: $19.49 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027.
7. 2028 base salary: $1.345 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027.
8. 2028 per-game roster bonus: $510,000 total, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed in 2027 (but must be earned).
9. 2029 option bonus: $21.49 million.
10. 2029 offseason roster bonus: $8 million.
11. 2029 base salary: $10 million.
12. 2029 per-game roster bonus: $510,000 total.
13. 2030 option bonus: $16.49 million.
14. 2030 offseason roster bonus: $8 million.
15. 2030 base salary: $15 million.
16. 2030 per-game roster bonus: $510,000 total.
The five-year deal has an average of $35.8 million at signing. It’s the same total payout from 2026 through 2030 as his prior contract with the Browns.
Of the total amount, $37 million is fully guaranteed at signing. Another $62 million is guaranteed for injury at signing. The payments become fully guaranteed in 2027.
In comparison to his prior deal, the guarantee drops in 2027 by $10.7 million. The 2028 guarantee increases by $7.2 million.
As a practical matter, it’s a three-year deal with team-held options for 2029 and 2030. The $8 million roster bonus in each season will force the Rams to make a quick decision.
The Rams signed seventh-round defensive tackle Tim Keenan III on Thursday.
His signing leaves only one player in the five-player class unsigned. First-round quarterback Ty Simpson still has not agreed to terms.
The Rams drafted Keenan in the seventh round, with the 232nd overall choice. The former Alabama nose tackle is expected to back up Poona Ford.
Keenan started 12 games for Alabama last season, recording 16 tackles, three tackles for a loss and two sacks.
In his four seasons with the Crimson Tide, Keenan totaled 95 tackles, 12.5 sacks for loss and 5.5 sacks.
The Cowboys and Rams do not play in the preseason, but they both train in Southern California. Therefore, they often have joint practices during training camp, including in 2025 in Oxnard.
They will again this year, Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Thursday.
The date was not announced.
It will give new Rams edge rusher Myles Garrett a chance to practice against his hometown team. Garrett grew up in Arlington, Texas, which is home of AT&T Stadium, where the Cowboys play.
The Cowboys will also have a joint practice with the Saints, who already announced their intention to work with Dallas. The Saints and Cowboys will practice in Oxnard while the Saints are on the West Coast for a preseason game against the Rams in the second week of the exhibition season.
The Saints are coached by the Cowboys former quarterback and offensive coordinator, Kellen Moore.
