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Most of us were expecting a major trade with the NFL on Monday. However, we ended up with two deals that will drastically shake up the 2026 season, and one of the trades ranks among the biggest in NFL history.
The Los Angeles Rams made a stunning deal to acquire two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns, giving up Pro Bowl upside Jared Verse and three picks (including a 2027 first-rounder). Hours later, the New England Patriots finally landed three-time All-Pro wide receiver AJ Brown after months of rumors, trading a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Now the debate is over who won these franchise changes. Did the Rams give up too much for Garrett? Were the Patriots smart in giving up a first-round pick for Brown?
We asked several league executives and scouts these questions after Monday’s trade. From praising the Rams to questioning the Browns, here’s what they told us:
Executives agree: Garrett is worth a high price
Longtime scout believes Myles Garrett will be “a good fit” with the Rams and could “further improve his game” even after setting the NFL single-season sack record in 2025. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Eric D. Williams: The Rams moved on from Jared Verse, a talented and productive young player, while giving up significant draft capital to acquire the NFL’s best defensive player, pass rusher Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns.
But in return, according to the sources I spoke with, the Rams have improved their chances of winning a Super Bowl this season — and beyond.
“It’s probably a win-win, with more risk for the Rams,” a league source told me of the deal. “It’s hard to argue with that for the Browns, given everything they’ve gotten. As great as Garrett is, he’s entering his 10th season.
“But if the Rams win a Super Bowl with him and he helps them, then that’s great for them no matter what. That’s how you really judge it for them. They would love to win it this year, but if they win it at any time. [Garrett] is part of the team and he is a key factor, it’s a good exchange. It doesn’t have to be the 2026 season. It would be unlikely for it to be after 2028, but it’s not impossible. »
Garrett, 30, is the first reigning Defensive Player of the Year to be traded in NFL history. And the move comes a year after he set the NFL single-season sack record, recording 23 sacks in 2025.
So it’s no surprise that a longtime scout who evaluated Garrett at Texas A&M in 2017 thinks the star edge rusher brings a different dimension to Los Angeles’ defense.
“A really good team just got better,” the scout told me. “I remember evaluating him when he came out, and I thought he was generational. It used to be that generational players stayed with one team over the course of their career, but that’s not the case anymore.
“I think he’ll fit in well with the Rams and give them something they don’t have. He’s got a lot of gas left in the tank. … Sometimes a good player like that will improve his game even more in a new environment.”
Parting ways with a two-time Pro Bowler in Verse isn’t easy, as the 2024 first-round pick ranked sixth in total pressures last season, according to Pro Football Focus. But giving up the 25-year-old — plus a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick — was worth it for Garrett, according to a front office executive I spoke with.
“Trading for the best defensive player in the league isn’t cheap,” the executive told me. “It’s the price of doing business.”
As for the Browns, the front office executive said receiving Verse and draft assets would help continue the team’s rebuilding process under new head coach Todd Monken.
“He’s a big, fast, productive passer who can also play the run,” the executive said of Verse. “At 25, he’s durable and on a rookie contract. That looks good to me.”
Garrett deal came a year too late
Did Browns GM Andrew Berry wait too long to trade Myles Garrett? That’s what an NFL executive thinks when he tells us: “It’s the Browns.” » (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
Ralph Vacchiano: Garrett wanted to leave Cleveland a year ago, but the Browns had other plans. They wanted to make him the face of their franchise as they began to rebuild from the ground up, giving him a then-record extension.
Then, on Monday, they decided to start all over again.
“It’s the Browns,” one NFL executive told me. “They had a plan. They gave it a whole year. Now they’re doing it again. This is what they’re doing.”
That’s certainly what happened when they traded Garrett just a year after giving him a four-year, $160 million contract with a full no-trade clause, which is rare. The Browns resisted all efforts to trade him, even after he requested a trade last offseason. And they got a historic season from him.
Of course, he did it on a 5-12 team.
“I don’t know what they got out of keeping him,” the executive told me. “They knew they didn’t have a quarterback. They knew they probably wouldn’t be good until late in his contract. He’s a great player, don’t get me wrong, but they needed assets more.
“I don’t know if they could have gotten a better deal last year or even the same deal, but they would have been a year ahead. [in their rebuilding]. You can’t manage a franchise by starting over every year. »
The Patriots finally have their man: AJ Brown
A league source was surprised that AJ Brown got a first-round pick, but thinks the star receiver will “do well” in New England. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
Williams: In one of the worst kept secrets of this offseason, the Eagles finally traded for Mercurial wide receiver AJ Brown. In a trade rumored to take place on June 1 due to salary cap implications for the Eagles, the Patriots gave up a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round selection for Brown’s services.
One source I spoke with thought it was a headache that the Eagles got a first-round pick even though it was a foregone conclusion that Philadelphia would trade Brown to New England. Brown played for Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel while they were both at Tennessee.
“I’m somewhat surprised the Eagles were able to get a first-round pick in the deal, even though it was a first in two years,” the league source told me. “It was clear Philadelphia wanted to move on, and yet they still managed to convince New England to move on.”
However, the league source acknowledged that the Rams being close to completing a trade for Brown (which potentially would have included wide receiver Davante Adams) could have driven up the price for New England. Now that Brown, known for his prickly personality, is a Patriot, how he fits in with third-year quarterback Drake Maye and is utilized by offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will be the next thing to watch in New England.
“I think he’ll be fine in the locker room,” the league source told me. “He couldn’t be tougher than Stefon Diggs in that locker room.”
‘Brown looked miserable’ in Philadelphia
An assistant general manager thinks AJ Brown is a “classic change-of-scenery guy,” believing his numbers will increase after a 1,003-yard season in 2025. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Vacchiono: A first-round pick in any draft is a high price to pay for a wide receiver approaching age 30 who hasn’t lived up to his potential over the past two seasons. But the Patriots expect AJ Brown to improve simply by getting him out of Philadelphia.
“He’s the classic change of scenery guy,” an NFL assistant general manager told me. “He clearly wasn’t happy in Philly. He’s going to be better just by wearing different colors.”
That’s what the Patriots are counting on after trading a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick for the soon-to-be 29-year-old. His numbers were down over the past two seasons, but he still averaged 73 catches, 1,041 yards and seven touchdowns despite missing seven games. After recording 1,003 receiving yards in 2025, Brown has recorded at least 1,000 yards in six of his first seasons in the league.
The injuries that bothered him weren’t at all the problem his attitude and behavior had become, at least to those looking at him from the outside. And in New England, that should change.
“AJ Brown looked miserable the last two years and the Eagles passing game was always bad,” one scout told me. “But look at the numbers he still put up. And he split the spotlight with DeVonta Smith. That shows you how talented this guy is.
“Yes, you have to make him the center of your offense. Yes, you have to work to keep him happy. But the Patriots will happily do all that. He’s the best receiver they’ve had in years.”
