As the Bears look for a pass rusher, among other needs, arguably the best at the position could be available. Six-time Pro Bowl defensive end Myles Garrett requested a trade from the Browns on Monday.
Garrett, still just 29, was an All-Pro this season with 14 sacks and has 102 1/2 career sacks in eight seasons — second in the NFL to T.J. Watt over that span. The Browns have failed to cash in on that and have managed just two winning seasons since drafting Garrett first overall in 2017, one spot ahead of the Bears drafting Mitch Trubisky, and Garrett said in a statement he wants out of Cleveland so he can go to a contender.
Browns general manager Andrew Berry said last week he does not plan to trade Garrett.
Trading for a player like him, who is still in his prime, will be costly. A first-round pick in he upcoming draft is only the starting point. When the Bears made a somewhat similar acquisition by trading for Khalil Mack in 2018, it cost them two first-rounders.
The Bears badly need a threat opposite defensive end Montez Sweat and have a league-low 90 sacks over the last three seasons. They have ample salary-cap space to absorb the hit of roughly $40 million over the final two years of Garrett’s deal, and they have their own first-round pick and two second-rounders this year — Nos. 10, 39 and 41 overall.