Myles

Garrett

Per NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, Garrett’s bonus is fully guaranteed, but Garrett must still earn it. To do so, Garrett “must participate in 84.375 percent of the offseason workout sessions, participate in all minicamps, participate in all OTA days, and timely report to training camp.” Garrett is set to make an average of $40 million per year, but potentially giving up $1 million is still a bit surprising. The front office restructured his contract earlier this offseason, generating trade speculation. The team has publicly rejected the idea that Garrett would be traded. It is too early to say if Garrett’s absence actually matters — he can still hit the 84.375 percent mark — but his early absence is worth noting. Stay tuned.

The Browns modified Garrett’s contract language last week, in a manner that lowers Garrett’s dead money in the event of a trade, while also granting Cleveland extra time to work through bonus payouts for the next three seasons. Understandably, reporters, fans and NFL teams wondered if a trade was imminent. Evidently, the Browns have no desire to trade their star defender. Berry adds that he does not want to “waste a ton more breath on the topic.” Theoretically, this should put this story to rest.

Schefter detailed his conversation with the Browns while speaking to Pat McAfee, adding that the Browns “couldn’t have been stronger” in their remarks. Garrett’s recently reworked deal gives the Browns more salary cap flexibility, so this report makes sense. Could the Browns’ front office still listen to trade offers? Absolutely. For now, it sounds like the Browns plan to keep him, though.

Yates reports, “Garrett’s contract previously called for his option bonuses in 2026, 2027 and 2028 to be exercised by the 15th day of the league year.” Now, his contract has been amended to push that day back to seven days before the start of the regular season each year. Garrett also had $8 million of his 2029 and 2030 base salary converted to roster bonuses. Yates adds that “the payment of the option bonuses was also modified in a way that has benefit to Garrett.” So, the Browns gain flexibility while Garrett gets a boost. Most notably, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year’s contract is easier to trade; Cleveland takes less dead cap in the event of a trade while getting an extra five months in the offseason before paying bonuses for the next three seasons. The change in Garrett’s contract language certainly makes things interesting for the Browns’ future.

Garrett totaled 23 sacks this season, setting a new NFL record along the way. He notably won Defensive Player of the Year in 2023 as well, following a 14-sack season. The nine-year veteran has astonishingly totaled double-digit sack tallies in all but his 2017 rookie season. The 30-year-old defensive end deservedly signed a four-year contract, averaging $40 million per year last offseason.

Neither the Browns nor the Bengals were in the playoff race for this game, so all eyes were on Garrett as he chased the record for the second straight week. He made onlookers wait until the final minutes of the game before tracking down Joe Burrow behind the line of scrimmage for an easy takedown. He was previously a half-sack behind T.J. Watt and Michael Strahan for the record, through Strahan accomplished the feat when the NFL played just 16 games in a season. Garrett locked up his second Defensive Player of the Year award several weeks ago, but now he will hold a place in the history books as the most productive pass-rusher the league has ever seen.

“People have a better chance of winning the lottery,” a source told Schefter. It appears Garrett, who has ten sacks through eight games this season, will remain with the Browns for at least another lost season. Garrett, 29, would surely draw a king’s ransom from a contending team looking to shore up their defense ahead of the postseason.

Garrett was a DNP to open the week and was upgraded to a limited participant in Thursday’s practice. Garrett’s injury doesn’t appear too severe at this point. We would expect him to see his normal assortment of snaps as he looks to get after Carson Wentz in London.

It was a limited session, but it suggests there’s not much concern about Garrett’s ability to play on Sunday in England. Kevin Stefanski called Garrett “day to day” yesterday, and Garrett has already played off DNPs ahead of Week 1 when he was dealing with a hip injury. Garrett is more than likely going to make Carson Wentz’s life miserable in Week 5.

We aren’t awfully worried about Garrett’s status for Week 5 yet. Garrett doesn’t need the practice reps and a “day to day” status typically isn’t a big deal for veteran players. He should be good to go for Week 5 versus Minnesota as long as he practices in some capacity before the final injury report is released. Garrett has four sacks this year and will look to add to the total versus Carson Wentz on Sunday.