Myles Garrett made it clear he is not interested in going through a rebuild with the Cleveland Browns after yet another playoff-less season.
Garrett has been clear in his intentions to play for a contender. He even demanded a trade this offseason, citing that he wanted to compete for a Super Bowl, which he felt he could not do in Cleveland.
“While I’ve loved calling this city my home, my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent. The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton; it has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl,” Garrett said in his social media post, demanding to be moved. “With that in mind, I have requested to be traded from the Cleveland Browns.”
After some public back-and-forth, the Browns and Garrett agreed to a four-year, $160 million extension. But his will to play on the biggest stage has not subsided.
“I quote Maxx (Crosby),” Garrett said on Friday, ahead of the final game of the season. “I’m committed to winning and as long as the team and the organization are doing so — they’re committed to that same thing — then I’m all on board. But if we’re thinking anything other than winning — tanking or rebuilding — it’s not me.”
Browns DE Myles Garrett Willing to Give Opinion
Garrett has more than earned the right to give his opinion on how things are going and what he wants to see. But Garrett will only give his opinion — on head coach Kevin Stefanski’s future and more — if he’s asked for it.
“I play football,” Garrett said. “If they ask me my opinion on whatever they ask me about, but I play football and that’s where I like to keep my focus.
“I feel like they ask my opinion more and more each year on what I want and how I feel about things, but that’s what you expect for a veteran and a quote-unquote star player. They want to try to elevate and motivate us and that helps bring all the other guys along. If we’re happy, that usually means that everyone else is happy. So I’m not running into the meetings, trying to make things happen. It’s not who I am, but I speak when they come to me and then, like I said, I just play my game.”
Garrett has posted 22 sacks this season. He has a chance to break the NFL single-season record — which is currently 22.5 — on Sunday against the Bengals.
Myles Garrett Speaks Out on Browns QB Situation
The Browns lured Garrett back by saying they planned to compete this season, not rebuild. Part of that equation was having veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett compete for the starting quarterback role. That didn’t go as planned. Pickett suffered an injury during camp and was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders after the preseason.
Flacco started four games but was benched for rookie Dillon Gabriel. The Browns traded Flacco away to the Cincinnati Bengals, which surprised Garrett. However, he didn’t use it as an excuse for the failed year.
“If we’re going to trade Joe away, then we’ve got to find a way to win games regardless of who’s back there and haven’t done it enough,” Garrett said. “I see a couple rookies that continue to grow, but it was interesting. But we’re here now.”
The Browns’ quarterback situation remains unsettled. Cleveland must decide whether to move forward with Shedeur Sanders or use one of its two first-round picks in the NFL draft to select a new quarterback.
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