Rams boost Super Bowl bid with huge Garrett trade

Myles Garrett will join the Los Angeles Rams from the Cleveland Browns in one of the biggest defensive trades in NFL history, while Odell Beckham Jr has returned to the New York Giants.

Two-time NFL defensive player of the year Garrett will join the Rams in exchange for two-time Pro Bowl pass rusher Jared Verse.

The Browns also receive a 2027 first-round NFL Draft pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick.

Garrett was the top overall pick by the Browns in 2017. The 30-year-old is arguably the NFL's best pass rusher and claimed a record 23 sacks last season.

Overall he has 125.5 sacks and has made 412 tackles (293 solo), with 23 forced fumbles. He has also recovered six fumbles, one for a touchdown.

Garrett requested a trade from Cleveland last summer before agreeing a new contract worth $160m (£119m).

General manager Andrew Berry said the franchise originally "did not envision a world" where Garrett "was not a Cleveland Brown".

"When the Rams first approached us with the possibility of trading Myles, we remained convicted in our position," Berry said.

"But as discussions intensified we were stuck at a legitimate crossroads. Hold on to a truly generational player who has become the identity of our team, or do we make the difficult decision that we think is best for the organisation over the long run?

"In that framework, the decision became clear, although our emotions were muddled.

"As we embark on a new era of Browns football with a young core and a replenished asset base, we felt this move was important to our transition."

Elsewhere, wide receiver AJ Brown completed his trade from the Philadelphia Eagles to the New England Patriots.

The 28-year-old helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl in 2025 but reunites with former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel at New England, who lost this year's Super Bowl.

Philly receive a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick for Brown, whose relationship with the Eagles soured over the past year.

The three-time Pro Bowler has 524 catches for 8,029 yards and 56 touchdowns in 105 regular-season games with the Eagles and the Titans.

Wide receiver Beckham Jr has returned to the New York Giants after signing with the NFL team where he first made his name 12 years ago.

Beckham was a free agent having not played last season, when he served a six-game suspension for failing a drugs test.

The 33-year-old worked out for the Giants in April and again on Monday before completing his return to the franchise.

"Nothin [sic] was ever given to me I worked for everything I have. Never give up on urself [sic]. Home Team i'm back…. Let's get it," Beckham said on Instagram.

Beckham was picked by the Giants in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft and spent five seasons in New York.

He made 390 receptions for 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns in 59 games for the Giants before being traded to the Cleveland Browns in 2019.

Beckham was part of the Los Angeles Rams' Super Bowl-winning team in 2022, but tore knee ligaments during the showpiece game and missed the entire 2022 season.

He returned with the Baltimore Ravens in 2023 before spending 2024 with the Miami Dolphins, struggling for form with both teams.

Across his NFL career, Beckham has recorded 575 receptions for 7,987 yards and 59 touchdowns.

Beckham was one of the stars the Rams signed in 2021, when they aimed to reach the Super Bowl in their own stadium at the end of that season.

They traded away multiple future draft picks for quarterback Matt Stafford and linebacker Von Miller, and the gamble paid off as the Rams not only reached the NFL's title decider but beat the Cincinnati Bengals in February 2022.

They have gradually rebuilt their roster and with 38-year-old Stafford committing to at least one more season after being last year's Most Valuable Player, the Rams were already favourites to win Super Bowl 61.

And with the big game returning to SoFi Stadium next February, the Rams have again gone all-in by luring the game's biggest defensive talent to LA.

Fearing he will never be in Super Bowl contention with Cleveland, Garrett toyed with the idea of leaving the Browns last year, and his record-breaking season convinced the Rams - who have the same owners as newly-crowned Premier League champions Arsenal - to make the move.

For Cleveland, though, it is another wasted opportunity. Their own blockbuster trade for Beckham in 2019 was meant to turn them into Super Bowl contenders and after that did not work out they gambled on bringing in quarterback Deshaun Watson.

He has barely played because of a suspension and injuries, and his fully-guaranteed, five-year contract worth $230m (£171m) has been like a millstone around the franchise's neck.

It meant that trading away the best player in the team's modern history seemed like the best option as the Browns aim to turn around their fortunes.

While Jared Verse is not considered a generational talent like Garrett, he was a first-round pick by the Rams in 2024, was the defensive rookie of the year and is five years younger than the man he replaces in Ohio.

Cleveland will also now have two first-round picks in 2027, a draft class which is stacked with highly-rated quarterback prospects, plus extra picks in 2028 and 2029 as they continue to rebuild.