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The NFL offseason isn't quite in full swing yet as the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles are gearing up to play in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday in New Orleans. However, the big game hasn't stopped the news cycle from churning as always.
On Monday, a massive variable got thrown into this offseason when superstar defensive end Myles Garrett requested a trade from the Cleveland Browns. Garrett has been arguably the best defensive player in football for the last five seasons and just about every team should be trying to get their hands on him.
Garrett's production during his career in Cleveland speaks for itself. Over the last five years, he has been named First Team All Pro four times and won the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year in 2023. During that time, he has racked up 72 sacks and 84 tackles for loss in just 80 games while forcing 14 fumbles. Any team that can bring him in immediately gets a major boost on defense.
Here are four teams that should be making a hard charge for Garrett this offseason.
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have been close to reaching a Super Bowl in the last five years, but they have consistently fallen short in each of those postseasons to some of the AFC's best. Four times, those defeats came at the hands of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
One of the Bills' weaker spots of their team has been the pass rush. Ed Oliver is a very good interior rusher and Greg Rousseau took a big step forward in 2024, but Buffalo is still missing a true difference maker on their defensive line who can wreck a game with a few massive plays throughout 60 minutes.
What better way to try to get over the hump than to try snd bring Garrett in? The Bills are always going to have a great offense with Josh Allen at quarterback, no matter what their receiving talent looks like. They became somewhat of a ground and pound offense with James Cook in 2024 that can consistently move the chains and play the possession game, so adding to the defense seems like the best way forward in Buffalo. There are still questions in the secondary, but getting the best pass rusher in the game would be a titanic move.
Los Angeles Chargers
Jim Harbaugh wasted no time establishing his culture and his identity in year one with the Los Angeles Chargers last year, but LA didn't quite have the dudes to make a deep playoff run. Offensively, Justin Herbert dragged a team with a poor receiving core and a disastrous interior offensive line to a decent season. On defense, Jesse Minter established one of the most modernized schemes in the NFL, but the Chargers lacked difference makers on that side of the ball.
Myles Garrett qualifies as that difference maker that would accelerate the Chargers' timeline heading into next year. Joey Bosa can't seem to stay healthy on the edge for the Chargers and Khalil Mack is getting older, is past his prime and is a free agent this offseason. Tuli Tuipulotu is a promising young piece, but he doesn't seem to have the juice as a pass rusher to become one of the true elite players at that position. Garrett would change the math for the Chargers and allow Minter to get very creative with his schemes.
This Chargers roster still has a lot of holes. They need guards and skill players galore on offense and could use some more talent in the secondary on defense, so parting ways with some of the picks that it would require to get Garrett on board would be a tough sell. However, if the Chargers feel that they are ready to compete, this could be the type of all-in move that gets them to where they want to go.
Washington Commanders
Before this season, the thought of the Washington Commanders coming into this offseason ready to make a win-now move would have been insane. However, after Jayden Daniels capped off one of the best rookie quarterback seasons ever with a trip to the NFC Championship Game, Washington should be ready to act fast.
The Commanders should be focused on offensive line upgrades and maybe adding one more side receiver this offseason. They are also one cornerback short, but they can take their defensive line from a very good one to arguably the best in the league. Defensive end Dante Fowler Jr., who was a contributing piece this season, is a free agent and will likely need to be replaced if he doesn't return.
Putting Garrett on the edge next to the stout defensive tackle duo of Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen would give the Commanders one of the best fronts in the NFL that would thrive both against the run and getting after the quarterback. The addition of a true superstar on that side of the ball could be enough to get the Commanders defense from an overachieving unit to a truly fearsome one.
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are in a bit of a transition after a very disappointing playoff flameout against the Commanders in the Divisional Round. Now, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are both gone, and they have taken a big chunk of the coaching staff with them.
Dan Campbell will certainly be looking for a spark to light a fire under these Lions. The offense will be fascinating to watch without Johnson's innovation and his partnership with Jared Goff, and the Lions may have to lean more on their defense as a result. Aidan Hutchinson and Josh Paschal will both be back next season, but Marcus Davenport is probably gone and Detroit has a difficult decision to make with Za'Darius Smith.
If the Lions elect to save some money by cutting Smith, Garrett could be a realistic target for a team that is in won-now mode. Adding Garrett to a defense that was very good when it was relatively healthy last season would be a seismic shift in the NFC and would give the Lions one of the best units in the league on that side of the ball. Hutchinson and Garrett would be the best pass rush duo in the NFL and would have the ability to carry this Lions team to a long-awaited Super Bowl.
