Everything we expected to happen in the NFL on June 1 transpired. The Philadelphia Eagles traded star wide receiver A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots. Odell Beckham Jr. reunited with the New York Giants. And the Los Angeles Rams acquired superstar defensive end Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns.
Wait, what’s that last one?
Yes, Garrett, who set the NFL single-season record with 23.0 sacks last season, was traded to the Rams in one of the biggest deals in league history. For Garrett, the Browns received a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-rounder, a 2029 third-rounder and third-year linebacker Jared Verse, whose addition excited Browns general manager Andrew Berry.
“He’s a huge part of this return for us. Jared is an outstanding football player — a former Defensive Rookie of the Year and a two-time regional ballot Pro Bowler,” Berry said about Verse when discussing the blockbuster trade at a press conference on Tuesday. “He’s a perfect DNA match for our attacking front. He’s really a terror in both phases, both as a run defender and a pass rusher. We are really, really excited about adding him to our team.
“He allows us to continue to play defense at a high level, which has been our standard over the past several seasons, and we’re really excited to welcome him into the organization.”
Verse, whom the Rams selected with the No. 19 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft out of Florida State, was the 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in a campaign that saw him total 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 66 combined tackles in the regular season and then two sacks and a 57-yard scoop-and-score across two postseason games.
Last season, Verse racked up 7.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and 58 combined tackles. Verse, a Pro Bowler in each of his first two seasons (2024 and 2025), was second in the NFL in hits (20), fourth in forced fumbles (three) and solo tackles (38), fifth in assists (18) and sixth in hurries (52) in 2025, according to Pro Football Focus.
Verse joins a Cleveland defense that was third in the NFL in opponent passing yards (167.2 per game), fourth in opponent total yards (283.6 per game), 14th in opponent points (22.3 per game) and 16th in opponent rushing yards (116.4 per game) last season. Granted, all that happened with Garrett, a two-time Defensive Player of the Year and five-time All-Pro.
The Browns have a new head coach in former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, whose defense coordinator is former Atlanta Falcons defensive pass game coordinator and New York Jets linebackers coach Mike Rutenberg.
