With the calendar flipped to June, there is more smoke around the possibility that the Browns could trade NFL sack king Myles Garrett.
Head coach Todd Monken noted recently that he had not yet spoken with Garrett since being hired in January. Garrett customarily does not attend Cleveland’s offseason program, but after he and the team agreed to modified language in his contract that makes it easier for the club to trade him, there’s reason to speculate that more could be going on here.
Monken was asked about Garrett and whether or not he’s been guaranteed the defensive end would be on the roster in 2026.
“No, I wasn’t assured that when I took the job,” Monken said, via Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 The Fan. “I was never assured of anything when I took the job, other than once I signed my contract, whatever my contract said — that’s what I was assured. No matter what, any of us coaches sign up for is we show up every day and we coach the guys in the building like we’ve done since we’ve been here. That hasn’t changed.
“He’s not [unlike] any other player. I’m never told who’s going to be on the team, who’s not going to be on the team,” Monken added. “If that’s a question, I mean, every day we evaluate the roster — Andrew [Berry] evaluates the roster, management evaluates the roster. And, like I said, he’s no different than any other player we’ve got. So, I don’t know how to respond to that, because it’s really no different today than it’s been for the last however many months I’ve been the head coach.”
Garrett, 30, requested a trade during the 2025 offseason before electing to re-sign with the Browns on a lucrative new deal. He then proceeded to set the single-season sack record at 23.0, winning his second AP defensive player of the year award in the last three seasons.
Not only did Garrett lead the league in sacks, but he was also No. 1 with 33 tackles for loss.
We’ll see if the speculation turns into a reality with a Garrett trade over the coming days.
Rams Clips
They have to install playing surfaces that meet exacting standards. They have to change the names of the facilities. They have to shut down all other business (such as major concerts) for the duration of the World Cup.
Given the hoops through which the 11 NFL stadiums will have to jump in order to placate FIFA, it’s fair to ask whether it’s worth it.
Ben Volin of the Boston Globe recently took a look at that question. Said an NFL official from a team that won’t be hosting any of the World Cup games, “I know more than a few teams weren’t disappointed to lose the bid.”
That could be sour grapes, because those who won the right to host the matches are crowing about it.
“Can’t sleep,” Cowboys owner and G.M. Jerry Jones said recently, per Volin. “This is a great chance to associate with the worldwide love with soccer, and lets us put a little notch on our belt and share it with what soccer’s about, too. They’ll never be able to take away that we held those games in that stadium.”
Cowboys executive Stephen Jones echoed the sentiment: “We’ll be shut down all summer. But it’s worth it. I mean, this is about brand and, you know, being a part of something special.”
The Joneses wanted to host the matches badly enough to give up their suite for the matches.
“I think I’ve got to go someplace else, but that was a part of it,” Jerry Jones said. “We did a lot of things to make this work.”
The Cowboys, Patriots, Falcons, Texans, Chargers/Rams, Giants/Jets, Chiefs, Seahawks, 49ers, Dolphins, and Eagles will be hosting World Cup games in their stadiums.
The total revenue is projected, per Volin, to be roughly $11 billion. FIFA will pay rent for the stadiums, while keeping the revenue from sponsorships, tickets, suites, merchandise, concessions, and parking.
So how much will the teams get for hosting the World Cup? Per Volin, the terms “have been kept under wraps.”
Given that folks like Jones are not known for doing bad deals, they’ll surely be making more money to host the World Cup matches than they would have made in a normal summer.
Still, it’s a headache. Extra work, extra expenses, extra hassles.
Not to mention the P.R. bruise that comes from the perception/reality that NFL owners who are giving FIFA the surfaces it demands while stubbornly refusing to do the same for pro football players.
The Rams signed second-round tight end Max Klare to his four-year rookie deal.
He is the third of the Rams’ five picks to sign, leaving only first-round quarterback Ty Simpson and seventh-round defensive tackle Tim Keenan III unsigned.
The Rams used the 61st overall pick on Klare, who played three seasons at Purdue before transferring to Ohio State.
He joins Colby Parkinson, Tyler Higbee and Terrance Ferguson in the tight ends room. The Rams used multiple tight ends on close to 40 percent of their plays last season.
Klare caught 51 passes for 685 yards with four touchdowns for the Boilermakers in 2024. He was a first-team All-Big Ten honoree in 2025 for the Buckeyes, totaling 43 receptions for 448 yards and two touchdowns.
In his 32 collegiate games, he caught 116 passes for 1,329 yards with six touchdowns.
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua’s trip to rehab was his major offseason storyline and he discussed that decision during a press conference from the team’s OTAs on Thursday.
If the need for Nacua to seek help had not developed, the main story of his offseason almost certainly would have been his contract. Nacua is in the final year of his rookie deal and his play over the last three seasons put him in line for a deal that would be at the top of the list for players at the position.
On Wednesday, Nacua was asked if he’s comfortable playing out the year without agreeing to a contract extension with the NFC West club.
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Nacua said. “I enjoy playing football. It’s the biggest dream come true. To be able to be out here and play for this organization specifically has been awesome. I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. It’s been fun to be out here and be around these guys. Like I said, I’ll let all those things handle themselves.”
Seahawks wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba currently sits atop the receiver pay scale after signing an extension this offseason. Whether Nacua joins him with a new deal in the near future will likely hinge on how much the off-field issues of this offseason have impacted the Rams’ view of Nacua’s future with the team.
Matthew Stafford is 38 years old, and he knows there’s a reason the Rams drafted the 23-year-old quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round.
Stafford declined to go into detail when asked by reporters what coach Sean McVay said to him about the Rams’ decision to draft Simpson, but he said he was grateful that McVay wanted to talk to him about it, and he understands why the Rams felt like they needed a younger quarterback to build for the future.
“I’m not going to get into what our conversation was I appreciate him talking with me about those things. We have constant dialogue and a great relationship, so I appreciate that,” Stafford said of his discussions with McVay. “I understand where the team’s coming from. Listen, I’m not 25 years old and I get that. We’re doing everything we can to be as good a football team as we can for now, for the future, for all of it.”
Stafford said he wants to help Simpson prepare, but that it’s not unlike the way he’s helping the whole team get ready for the 2026 season.
“My job first and foremost is to get myself and our team ready to play as best as I possibly can. He’s a part of that team. We’re in a unique position in that we play the same position, I have a ton of experience and he’s just now starting his journey as an NFL player,” Stafford said. “He’s a guy that asks questions. I’ve been trying to answer those as honestly and as thoroughly as I possibly can.”
Stafford said the Rams’ whole roster is working to improve, and he’s supporting everyone.
“I’m happy to add good players to our team,” Stafford said. “He’s one of them. But my job is go out there and get myself and our team as ready to play as I possibly can.”
The 49ers ended up with not one but two international games in 2026 — one in Australia and one in Mexico. Even though the trip to Melbourne will be much longer than the trip to Mexico City, the Mexico trip will likely keep them away from home even longer than the season-opener down under.
“We haven’t finalized it yet, but we’d love to stay here and go there,” Shanahan said of the travel plans for the Week 11 game against the Vikings in Mexico City. “It’s a shorter flight, but that’s not really the issue. The main thing with Mexico City is it’s 2,000 [feet] higher than Denver. And so, we like to get adjusted to that altitude. So, we’ll probably go to Colorado Springs again like we did last time to get ready for that altitude and then probably go to Mexico City the night before.”
The 49ers play their Week 10 game at Dallas. Shanahan was asked whether the team would go straight to Colorado from Texas.
“We haven’t decided that yet, but most likely,” Shanahan said. “We’ll probably end up, the Mexico City trip will probably be a longer one than the Australia one, just because of that.”
The two international trips impose a significant burden on the 49ers. And it potentially creates a competitive disadvantage. Those issues, however, have taken a back seat to the league’s efforts to globalize the game.
The NFL wants to secure the ability to play 16 international games per year, with the idea of having every team make one international trip per season. That would be the fairest way to handle it. If every team has to leave the country once, the disadvantage levels out.
For now, with a maximum of 10 international games, it would be far more fair for no team to be expected to travel to another country for a game more than once per year. In the ultra-difficult NFC West, having the 49ers make two separate trips to play in another country won’t make it an easier to successfully compete with the Seahawks and the Rams.
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua met with the media for the first time since completing rehab this offseason.
“Some of the things I feel like I’ve learned is it’s OK to ask for support and to recognize that the platform that I have being a professional football player,” Nacua said, via Tyler Dragon of USA Today. “And trying to use that for the betterment of myself and for those around me, and the people that have supported me.”
Nacua expressed gratitude for support from the Rams and those in his circle.
“This offseason I’ve been really grateful for the support from the organization, especially my teammates, people reaching out at different times of the offseason just checking in,” Nacua said. “I’m just really grateful for the people around me and in this organization.”
Nacua is facing a civil suit from a woman who accuses him of biting her on the left shoulder after a group dinner in Los Angeles on Dec. 31. The woman, who is Jewish, has also accused Nacua of making an antisemitic statement during dinner.
The plaintiff, Madison Atiabi, is seeking damages for assault and battery, gender violence and negligence.
Nacua checked into a treatment center in Malibu this spring.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is now under contract with the Rams through the 2027 season, and he says his hope is that he’s playing at least that long.
The 38-year-old Stafford told Pat McAfee that he would like to keep playing beyond this year.
“I’m happy to be in Los Angeles right now with the sun beating down on my face and another year under my belt coming up, and hopefully some more football after that. I love playing this game,” Stafford said.
Stafford said he and his family discuss whether he should retire, and so far everyone is on board with him keeping it going.
“My body feels pretty good, luckily, which is great,” Stafford said. “Those conversations are family things. I talked about those with my wife and my kids. They love watching me play, they want me to keep doing it as long as I feel good and I feel excited about it, which I am,” Stafford said.
The Rams are already planning for a future without Stafford by drafting quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round. Stafford said he’ll attempt to manage the end of his career in a way that works for the Rams.
“It is something delicate,” Stafford said. “I’ve got to navigate the end of it, and I’m not sure when that is. I want to be fair to our team, but I also want to be fair to myself and take this thing year to year. But at the same time, I love playing, and I’m excited about this season.”
Stafford is heading into his sixth season with the Rams after playing 12 with the Lions. Whether he’ll retire as a Ram or perhaps go elsewhere when it’s time for Simpson to take the reins of the Rams’ offense remains to be seen, but he’s hoping that his 18th NFL season will not be his last.
Saints head coach Kellen Moore said in March that the team will be holding training camp in Louisiana this summer, but they will head to California for some extended work as well.
The Saints are scheduled to be in Los Angeles for their second preseason game and Moore said at a Thursday press conference that the team is slated to hold joint practices with the Rams before that contest. Moore also said that the team plans to work out with the Cowboys, who train in Oxnard, while they are out west.
The final game of the preseason will take place against the Cowboys in Dallas.
Moore said that the team will also be hosting joint practices with the Jaguars. The two teams will face each other in the Superdome on August 15.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford says he’s happy to have rookie quarterback Ty Simpson as a new teammate.
Contrary to any talk that he might be upset with the team using its first-round draft pick on a quarterback, Stafford told Pat McAfee that he’s happy to work with Simpson.
“I’m in there with him in the meeting room, on the practice field, trying to share as much knowledge as I can. I was a big fan of Ty when he was playing at Alabama,” Stafford said.
Stafford said that although he didn’t enjoy watching Simpson’s Alabama team beat Stafford’s alma mater, Georgia, last season, he otherwise liked what he saw of Simpson in college.
“I sent him a text after he got drafted and said, ‘Really enjoyed watching you play, just that you were in the wrong jersey,’” Stafford said. “I did enjoy watching him play. He’s a talented kid.”
Stafford said that when he was a first-round rookie, older players helped him out, and he plans to do the same.
“I’m going to do everything I can to get this team ready to play, to win, but at the same time share some of the knowledge that I’ve gained throughout my career, because I wouldn’t be in the seat I am now, after a really good football season, if I didn’t have people helping me out along the way, so I’m happy to do that,” Stafford said. “He’s been a sponge. He’s looking to get better.”
