Cleveland Browns locking up Myles Garrett is right move
The Cleveland Browns have made sure that Myles Garrett is staying in town and they did so with a five-year extension worth $125 million.
Chris Jones had about an hour to puff out his chest and brag about being the league’s highest-paid defender before the Browns made Myles Garrett the talk of the NFL world.
Cleveland and Garrett agreed on a five-year extension worth $125 million and will keep Garrett in a Browns uniform through 2024. This was absolutely the right decision for Cleveland and now their top priority signed and happy. He’s now set to be the highest paid defender in the NFL.
The #Browns and star pass-rusher Myles Garrett are closing in on a 5-year extension worth $125M, sources say. Another massive deal, this time for $25M in new money per year. Their top priority of this offseason and they are in the final stages. 💰💰💰
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 14, 2020
After a season where they went winless in 2016, the Browns held the number one overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft and rather than going with one of the three most talked about quarterbacks that year, they went with Texas A&M star Myles Garrett.
Even though this pick led to Cleveland missing out on Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson, Garrett hasn’t been a bust by any means. He’s totaled 30.5 sacks in just three years of action while also racking up 104 tackles and 65 quarterback hits. He’s been the star of the show for Cleveland defensively.
Why Cleveland Browns signing Myles Garrett long-term is the right move
He was far and away the best option in that draft at the time and the Browns went with the sure thing rather than another potential quarterback bust, something they’ve been experts at over the past two decades.
Garrett was a big reason for why many thought the Browns could finally turn the corner this past season. The defense was clearly on the rise after he started all 16 games and had 13.5 sacks during the 2018 season and looked to only be getting better down the stretch.
While the Browns’ 2019 campaign didn’t go according to plan, keeping Garrett around will help them in maybe getting to that point in 2020 instead. They have talented options on defense including Olivier Vernon and Sheldon Richardson upfront to join Garrett, who can hopefully propel them higher from their 20th overall defensive ranking from a season ago.
The Browns had to make this move because of what Myles Garrett brings to their defense. He’s one of the best edge rushers in the game and the Browns’ defense struggled without him once he was suspended due to his fight with Mason Rudolph that saw him miss the final six games (Cleveland went 2-4 without him).
Garrett is a game-changer and he’ll be a wrecking ball defensively for years to come for the Cleveland Browns. He might not be Mahomes or Watson, but the Browns got Baker Mayfield first overall the next year, and if he can piece it together in 2020, Cleveland could be in a very good spot over these next few seasons.
Extending Myles Garrett and keeping him in a Cleveland Browns uniform was a no brainer. He’s getting paid a lot of money, but it’ll be worth it for Cleveland.