As the Myles Garrett trade speculation hit a fever pitch prior to the 2026 NFL Draft, and again Monday with the calendar flipping to June 1, Cleveland Browns fans could at least take solace in the fact that if an unlikely blockbuster move happened, their team would be getting a record haul in return.
The full details of Cleveland’s now confirmed trade between the Browns and Los Angeles Rams were well worth a few double-takes, though.
Per ESPN insider Adam Schefter, the draft pick compensation heading to Cleveland along with star pass rusher Jared Verse includes just one first-round selection — the Rams’ pick in 2027. Los Angeles is also sending its second-round pick in 2028 and a third-round pick in 2029.
At first glance, three early-round draft picks along with an ascending superstar (and Dayton, Ohio, native) in Verse feel like a fine score for Cleveland, especially with Garrett entering his age-31 season.
But the longer this monster move marinates, the more Browns fans have to be wondering: That’s it for a future first-ballot Hall of Famer fresh off the first official 23-sack season in NFL history?
As one Browns fan put it in the comments of Schefter's tweet:
"It’s June 1st, not April first. Please make the appropriate edits to tell me we got a 2028 1st round pick as well. This is unbelievable. We got absolutely fleeced."
Full trade terms, per ESPN sources:
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 1, 2026
🏈Rams receive: Myles Garrett
🏈Browns receive: Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 2nd and a 2029 3rd. https://t.co/3WdPta3vrz pic.twitter.com/mXq3tUEhdt
The Browns didn’t get the haul many fans expected for Myles Garrett
GM Andrew Berry and the Browns clearly valued Verse, who was the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2024 and has already been selected to a pair of Pro Bowls. He hasn’t yet been named All-Pro, though, and Cleveland has to be banking on that changing in the future after failing to land a premium first-round selection in this deal.
The harsh reality here is that Garrett could play a key role in making sure that 2027 first-round pick falls in the 30s. The Rams were just in the NFC Championship Game. They have the reigning league MVP at quarterback in Matthew Stafford. And they’ve now added both Garrett and star cornerback Trent McDuffie on defense. The Rams will enter this season as the clear-cut favorites to win the Super Bowl, and that means the best pick in this trade for Cleveland could end up being a glorified high second-round selection (with a fifth-year option, at least).
The overall compensation looks worse through the lens of this upcoming 2026 season. New head coach Todd Monken hasn’t even conducted his first mandatory full-squad practice yet. The Browns added a younger player with elite upside in Verse, but one of the best defenses in football just got worse on paper. This trade comes 325 days from the 2027 NFL Draft. In terms of the present, those two future picks are devalued on the NFL Trade Value Chart. A 2028 second-round pick, in June of 2026, equates to a third-round value. A 2029 third-round selection at this point equates to a fifth-round value.
Those future picks will gain value over time, though, so the Browns could be much better off following this trade entering the 2029 season than they are entering 2026. Trading away your most dominant player in a move that worsens your situation now, and relies on hit-or-miss draft selections in the future, only makes Monday’s bombshell news even tougher to digest for Browns fans.
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