While I doubt this will be the end of the conversation among fans and media, Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry and Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes have effectively eliminated any possibility of Myles Garrett becoming a Lion in 2025.
Despite Garrett’s public request to be transferred from the Browns, Berry claimed the team had no plans to trade the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year.
“Our stance has not changed,” Berry stated during his NFL Combine press conference. “We can’t imagine a situation where not having Myles as a part of this organization is best for the Browns.”
Obviously, Holmes cannot comment publicly about Garrett—a guy who is under contract with another organization. However, a few minutes following Berry, Holmes faced numerous questions about the potential of getting another edge rusher.
Holmes has experience acquiring a pass rusher through trade. In October, after Aidan Hutchinson’s season-ending injury, the Lions traded a third-round pick for Browns defensive end Za’Darius Smith, Garrett’s teammate. What he learnt during that process may seem apparent to most, but it is worth repeating: most teams are unwilling to trade up their finest pass rushers, given how valuable the position is.
“There aren’t many of those guys available,” Holmes explained. “You can always claim, ‘We lost a star edge rusher to injury,’ right? Well, just because you lose a star pass rusher, there aren’t that many in the league anyhow. Just because we lost a star pass rusher due to injury does not imply that other teams will say, “Hey, we have a star pass rusher.” I know you lost one, but we do have one. Would you like to have this one? No, that’s a star pass rusher for that squad, and they want to win games.”
The Lions are not opposed to adding another pass rusher. Holmes even stated that they would like to have two or three top pass rushers on the squad—as would any team.
“Do we want to have another one? Yes. But we’d want to have three or four top-tier rushers,” Holmes stated. “But it isn’t necessarily the reality of what you can achieve. It is absolutely not being overlooked.”
Part of the problem is that the team is already planning to spend money on its current top pass rusher, Aidan Hutchinson. The Lions’ 2022 first-round pick is nearing the end of his rookie contract, but the Lions can use his 2026 fifth-year option to extend his rookie deal for another year.
“Those guys are difficult to find and expensive to keep. Again, we have one that is scheduled for an extension, and we’ve already started planning for him,” Holmes added. “When you talk about adding another one, the question is, can you afford to add another one? Because you want to add the other one on top of everything else you have, which makes it difficult.”
So, given the price, does Holmes believe they could get another top pass rusher?
“Probably not.”
Well, that’s it.
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