Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett consulted with his family and agent before announcing earlier in the week that he wanted to be traded. He also sought out the advice of someone who had been in a similar situation: NBA superstar LeBron James.
James famously left the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010 and headed to the Miami Heat, where he won his first two NBA championships. Like James, Garrett wants to play for a team that has a chance to win.
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year made an appearance on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Wednesday to explain why he requested to be traded and what his conversation with James was like.
“Just what a transition looked like for him,” Garrett said while attending Radio Row interviews ahead of Super Bowl LIX.
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“What was his thought process going into it before he left Cleveland. Just making sure I made a logical decision, taking my time, and trying to take away the pressure of doing something like that. Cleveland, really that area of Northeast Ohio, has been his home and it feels like my home as well,” Garrett said.
When Eisen asked if LeBron — a Browns fan — was disappointed with Garrett’s decision, the six-time Pro Bowler said he wasn’t.
“He had actually been reaching out to me to talk, to get my side of things. He’s been a part of difficult times,” Garrett replied. “He just wanted to see exactly how I was feeling, where my head was at and if I need to talk through anything.”
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Garrett also made it clear that he hopes to be playing in the Super Bowl, not just taking interviews during Super Bowl Week, wherever he lands next.
“I want to go to a contender,” Garrett told Eisen. “I just want to be in a position to play in those big games and win big games and feel like I can make a meaningful impact and elevate a team and take them over the top.”
Garrett didn’t feel like that was a real possibility in Cleveland, which is coming off a disappointing 3-14 season.
“Looking at the trajectory of the team, talking to some of the higher-ups — I have a lot of respect for them, but I just don’t think we’re aligned on where the team is going in the near future,” he said. “I feel like the window for us as athletes is only so broad and it only continues to close as years go by.”
The 29-year-old Garrett was drafted by the Browns with the No. 1 pick in 2017. He has lived up to the hype, totaling double-digit sacks in every season but his rookie year. Garrett has also been named a first-team All-Pro four different times, including this past season.
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But the Browns have finished with a losing record in six of Garrett’s eight seasons in Cleveland, including an 0-16 year in 2017. They’ve made the playoffs just twice in his tenure and are one of four franchises that haven’t appeared in the Super Bowl.
“I have a lot of love for Cleveland, but it’s always for me been about [playing] for championships, winning those big games and winning Lombardis. … We haven’t had the opportunity to do that,” Garrett said. “It’s never been about the Hall of Fame for me.”
Garrett finished the season with 47 tackles and a team-leading 14 sacks. The Browns have reportedly said they have no plans to trade the eight-year veteran, who holds the team’s all-time career sack record with 102.5.
However, Garrett isn’t concerned.
“No one’s stuck to one team,” Garrett said, while referencing the Lakers trading for Luka Doncic, now a teammate of James’. “So we’ll see what happens.”
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