For Myles Garrett, the dream was always a Super Bowl ring in Cleveland, but eight years of frustration nearly turned that dream into a trade demand earlier this February. Just when an ugly standoff looked inevitable, the situation took a complete U-turn. According to former Browns lineman Joe Thomas, three things led to the turnaround.

“He’s all about trying to win championships. They decided to make him the highest-paid defensive player, which was surpassed by Michael Parsons later on. I think it was partly that,” Thomas said on The Dan Patrick Show. “But I do think that they had convinced him of some vision that was more convincing than the fans had gotten. A lot of it probably, honestly, had to do with Jim Schwartz on defense, as his defensive coordinator loves him.”

“‘Oh, by the way, you can finish your career where you started, which is very rare in the NFL,'” Thomas added about another potential selling point from the Browns.

The trade request itself wasn’t surprising.

Garrett has never hidden the fact that winning a championship is the standard he holds himself to. And for long stretches, that goal hasn’t felt realistic in Cleveland. His body language late last season said as much, especially after the Browns failed to build on the 11-win, playoff season they had in 2023.

For the first time in December, Garrett openly acknowledged that he might finish his career somewhere other than Cleveland, the team that drafted him first overall in 2017. By February 2025, the trade request became official. At that point, it felt like this was heading toward either a holdout or a clean split.

Instead, the Browns dug in.

They refused to trade him and followed that stance with a four-year, $160 million extension. The deal made Garrett the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history and locked him in through 2030. Call it a reversal, a reset, or simply reality setting in. Since then, the DPOY runner-up has ensured he takes care of the team, whether they win or not.

After a loss to the Patriots this year, Garrett’s throwing his helmet on the sidelines became a headline. However, it was revealed later that before that game, he told defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire he wasn’t satisfied with how he played the previous week. He asked to take every snap in practice to clean things up. While he performed well personally, the final result for the team was yet another loss.

But his desire to win hasn’t changed. Neither has his edge. Coordinator Jim Schwartz has talked about the message Garrett sends to the rest of the locker room just by how he works. He loves the team. And he never found it easy to hand in the trade request. However, he doesn’t regret taking the chance either.

Garrett had admitted he made the request heavy-heartedly. But looking back, it actually strengthened his relationship with the organization. The fan backlash was expected, and he understands how that works. Winning people back usually starts with how you play.

And the turnaround has shown up on the field.

Garrett leads the NFL in sacks this season with 21.5 and is tied for fifth in forced fumbles with three. The Browns’ defense reflects that impact: third in points allowed, first in passing yards allowed. However, he’s experienced exactly three playoff games over his career with the Browns. If somehow Cleveland agrees that it cannot give Garrett what he’s looking for and decides to move him, it could have some implications.

On one hand, Garrett is the defense. He knows the system. He’s spent his entire career there. On the other hand, with his trade value at an all-time high, speculation about a potential move persists, however unlikely.

Over the next two years, the LB is guaranteed about $62 million. An acquiring team would be getting a deal if he continued to play anywhere near his current level. Consequently, the Browns would incur around $41 million in dead cap charges if they were to trade him, similar to the Broncos cutting Russell Wilson and having a winning record since then.

If Garrett is to be believed, his standout performances are not for his personal gain or for him to get a better trading offer. For him, it is to set a standard for younger players. The Browns, leaning into a youth movement, need that presence. And even without a playoff spot, Garrett is chasing something meaningful: the single-season sack record.

Could Myles Garrett break the sack record?

The short answer? Probably, yes.

With three games left on the schedule, Myles Garrett sits just 1.5 sacks shy of passing Michael Strahan (2001) and T.J. Watt (2021) for 22.5, the highest single-season total since sacks became an official stat in 1982. If Garrett is on the field for the rest of the way, it’s hard to imagine he doesn’t get there. For one, he certainly believes so…

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“It’s always been in reach,” Garrett said about the record. “That is something that I had in my mind coming into the league, being talked about among those greats. So, I just want to continue to just put myself into that conversation.”

Whether the record ultimately falls or not, Garrett has already carved out a historic season. And along the way, he’s quietly blown past several benchmarks:

• His 10 tackles for loss put him on pace to shatter his previous career-high of 22.
• This year, he’s had two games of five tackles for a loss each and two other games with four tackles for a loss.
• After 14 games, he’s only gone without a tackle for a loss twice.
• He’s already racked up 57 combined tackles and is only three away from tying his personal best.
• He broke the franchise record for single-game sacks with 5 at New England.

Put it all together, and it’s fair to say this has been one of the most productive defensive seasons the league has seen. A year ago, Myles Garrett finished with 14 sacks and 22 tackles for loss. Now, he’s up to 124 career sacks, moving him into 21st place on the NFL’s all-time list, right behind Dwight Freeney at 125.5—another record he can look forward to breaking.

Cleveland will next host the Buffalo Bills, a team that has struggled to keep Josh Allen upright, surrendering 33 sacks this season. It’s another opportunity for Garrett to make history. As for Garrett’s future in Cleveland, the message hasn’t changed. When asked if he’s still aligned with the organization on where things are headed, his answer was straightforward.

“Yeah,” he said. “I mean, it was that (winning) and they agreed. We still are in agreement on that.”