Browns Trade Garrett to Rams in Blockbuster Deal
The Rams reportedly are sending edge rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick and potentially more compensation to Cleveland for Garrett. The 30-year-old defensive star signed a four-year, $160 million extension with the Browns last season and has at least 14 sacks in each of the past five seasons. truewildgame.online
Verse won the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award in 2024 after posting 7.5 sacks, 27 QB hits and three forced fumbles. The trade comes as part of the Rams' defensive overhaul this offseason, making them Super Bowl favorites at +650 odds.
4 Takeaways From Denny Hamlin Snatching Win From Christopher Bell In Nashville
Admittedly, Denny Hamlin has not executed the best on restarts this season, so winning Sunday in a race that was a nail-biter down the stretch certainly made for a satisfying night. Hamlin led 57 of the 115 laps of the final stage at Nashville Superspeedway but stole the win from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell after a late caution set up a four-lap dash to the finish. "We had a few [races] where we were the best car this year, and we didn't win because of restarts," Hamlin said in his post-race news conference following his second victory of the year. "It felt really good to get one back that we certainly shouldn't have on speed. "The 20 [of Bell] had us covered. I think he passed us about three or four times. But I just learned from my mistakes earlier in the season and how I approach restarts." Here are my takeaways: 1. Worst To First For Hamlin Much like the track going from dry to wet to dry, Hamlin went from first to suddenly worst to methodically getting back to first. Hamlin started from the pole but was penalized for jumping the restart by mashing the throttle well ahead of the restart zone. It was a pretty clear violation of the restart rules for Hamlin, who didn’t question the call at the start of the race, which was delayed by 80 minutes because of rain. "Usually, as the leader, you can dictate when to go, but it was way too close to Turn 4 and not close enough to the start-finish line," Hamlin said about restarting well ahead of the zone that is on the frontstretch. "No arguing it or anything like that. It was certainly the right call." From there, he just had to be patient over the 300-lap, 400-mile race on the 1.33-mile concrete track. He obviously knows how to rally as he won for the 62nd time in his Cup career. 2. Bell Loses Another One A week after he could blame the rain, Bell could only blame himself for not winning. He had a better car than Hamlin and was in position to win until a late caution set up the dash to the finish. He could never get clearly ahead of Hamlin as they battled along with JGR teammate Chase Briscoe for the top three spots. The finishing order ended up being Hamlin-Bell-Briscoe, extending Bell’s winless streak to 21. He has led 398 laps this year without a win. "I’m just disappointed in myself," Bell said in a Toyota news release. "[My team] brought a great race car and I didn’t get the job done." 3. In The Dumps Nine cars ended up retiring from the race because of damage in accidents (another three were damaged in a crash just past the finish line) and only 15 cars finished on the lead lap in a race filled with wrecks. It had drivers feeling frustrated, with possibly Bubba Wallace feeling it the most, as he dropped to 15th in the standings, just 34 points ahead of the current playoff bubble. "I’m tired," he said in his interview on Prime following his exit. "It’s hard to be in the same boat constantly every week. You’ve got to figure out how to put it behind you and show up. I somehow become the bad guy the days following this, but I’ve got to figure out how to be better and learn from it. "It’s really hard when you are driving your best and trying to just make progress throughout the race, and you get wiped out." 4. Impressive SVG Shane van Gisbergen is known for his road-course dominance but he had a solid day at Nashville with a fifth-place finish. The race showed he is getting the hang of the ovals. "I really enjoyed myself," "van Gisbergen said in a Chevrolet news release. "I learned a lot. I learned to be comfortable moving around in (Turns) 1 and 2, which I’ve never been able to do before." 4 ½. What’s Next The NASCAR Cup Series goes to one of the fastest tracks on the circuit as it heads to the 2-mile Michigan Speedway for a 400-mile Sunday afternoon race. ARCA (Friday) and trucks (Saturday), both on FS1, are also on the weekend lineup. That race could very well be another JGR intra-team battle, but with it being near the homes of Chevrolet and Ford, this race often carries extra emphasis for the teams.
Hurricanes’ Brind’Amour and Tulsky speak ahead of Stanley Cup Final
Giants sign Odell Beckham Jr.
Odell Beckham Jr. is coming back to where his NFL career started.
Shortly after multiple reports on Monday said that Beckham will sign with the Giants as a free agent, the Giants announced the agreement. Beckham worked out for the team the second time this offseason earlier in the day.
Beckham was a 2014 first-round pick and was named the offensive rookie of the year after catching 91 passes during his first NFL season. He had 197 catches over the next two seasons, but missed most of 2017 after fracturing his ankle and dropped to 77 catches after signing a contract extension ahead of the 2018 season. He was traded to the Browns the next year and went on to play for the Rams, Ravens, and Dolphins before sitting out all of last season.
Beckham played for first-year Giants head coach John Harbaugh while with Baltimore in 2023, so it will be a dual reunion for the wideout now that he's back with the NFC East club.
The Giants are also signing wide receiver Braxton Berrios after a Monday workout.
Todd Monken: I wasn't assured Myles Garrett would be here when I took the job
With the calendar flipped to June, there is more smoke around the possibility that the Browns could trade NFL sack king Myles Garrett.
Head coach Todd Monken noted recently that he had not yet spoken with Garrett since being hired in January. Garrett customarily does not attend Cleveland’s offseason program, but after he and the team agreed to modified language in his contract that makes it easier for the club to trade him, there’s reason to speculate that more could be going on here.
Monken was asked about Garrett and whether or not he’s been guaranteed the defensive end would be on the roster in 2026.
“No, I wasn’t assured that when I took the job,” Monken said, via Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 The Fan. “I was never assured of anything when I took the job, other than once I signed my contract, whatever my contract said — that’s what I was assured. No matter what, any of us coaches sign up for is we show up every day and we coach the guys in the building like we’ve done since we’ve been here. That hasn’t changed.
“He’s not [unlike] any other player. I’m never told who’s going to be on the team, who’s not going to be on the team,” Monken added. “If that’s a question, I mean, every day we evaluate the roster — Andrew [Berry] evaluates the roster, management evaluates the roster. And, like I said, he’s no different than any other player we’ve got. So, I don’t know how to respond to that, because it’s really no different today than it’s been for the last however many months I’ve been the head coach.”
Garrett, 30, requested a trade during the 2025 offseason before electing to re-sign with the Browns on a lucrative new deal. He then proceeded to set the single-season sack record at 23.0, winning his second AP defensive player of the year award in the last three seasons.
Not only did Garrett lead the league in sacks, but he was also No. 1 with 33 tackles for loss.
We’ll see if the speculation turns into a reality with a Garrett trade over the coming days.
