ARIZONA CARDINALS

Just how aggressive should Cardinals be in trading for pass rusher Myles Garrett?

Feb 3, 2025, 6:18 PM | Updated: Feb 4, 2025, 12:09 pm

Cleveland Browns superstar pass rusher Myles Garrett just said “hold my beer” when it came to trade chatter in the sports world.

While it should be the NBA taking centerstage this week following a pair of wild trades and Thursday’s deadline rapidly approaching, Garrett now finds himself in the offseason trade cycle after publicly requesting a trade early Monday morning.

And it didn’t take long for Arizona Cardinals fans to take notice, quickly crafting trade packages for one of the league’s best. After all, A Garrett-Cardinals pairing would fill a major need for a team embarking its third season under general manager Monti Ossenfort and head coach Jonathan Gannon.

Just how likely is Myles Garrett-Cardinals?

Unlike the past two offseasons when moves of this magnitude were more of a pipedream than anything else given the Cardinals’ standing following the previous regime, it’s clearly time to get aggressive ahead of a big Year 3.

Progress has (slowly) been made across the first two seasons under Gannon and Co. Arizona doubled its win total from four wins to eight this past season. The Cardinals also found themselves in the running for the NFC West crown — albeit for a few short weeks — before a second-half-of-the-season collapse once again took over any prospective postseason run.

The Cardinals can’t let that flash in the pan be just that. Improving the defense — specifically the pass rush — with a future Hall of Famer who is still very much producing would certainly help in that regard.

The First Team All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler is coming off his seventh straight season with double digit sacks (14) to go along with 84 quarterback pressures. He also paced the NFL in tackles for loss with 22.

Garrett’s production alone makes at the very least a deeper dive into bringing him aboard worth it. Then you toss in what he can do for others on the defense.

Given his stature as one of the best, Garrett is a double team waiting to happen, opening up the doors for others to feast along the line. Just imagine what kind of impact Darius Robinson could have with more 1-on-1 looks.

“The dude is different. … This dude is just a monster. Big, strong, athletic, physical. He’s flexible, multiple,” former Cardinals linebacker Lorenzo Alexander told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Monday. “He’s a guy that can slide inside if you need to if you want to go third-down rush package, can play defensive end at a high level.

“Great dude from all the teammates I know that I’ve played with. They love him. He works hard, he wants to win. It’s a no-brainer from that standpoint.”

And let’s not forget about defensive coordinator Nick Rallis and the pressure that would be taken off his plate after having to get creative last year when it came to generating some kind of pass rush.

Letting the DC focus more of his time on other aspects of the unit — like the secondary — could do wonders in the defense taking that next step.

Having crossed paths with quarterback Kyler Murray from their time together at Texas A&M and having been on the same Browns team as Cardinals center Hjalte Froholdt and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing are added pluses in the familiarity department.

What would a Myles Garrett trade look like for the Cardinals?

Now for the transactional part of this exercise. For Arizona to land Garrett, it’s going to cost some draft capital with the potential for more.

A good comparison? The deal the Chicago Bears struck with the Las Vegas Raiders to acquire Khalil Mack in 2018.

Swinging two first-round picks in addition to a third- and sixth-rounder, Chicago got their guy plus a second- and sixth-round pick. On top of the trade, the Bears also got long-term commitment from Mack in the form of a six-year contract extension.

For the Cardinals to land Garrett, two first-round picks feel like a starting point, especially given that Garrett is under contract for two more years.

Next year, Garrett carries a cap number of $19.7 million before that number jumps to $20.3 million in 2026, per OverTheCap.

But with no guaranteed salary for either of the next seasons, all signs point to Garrett looking for a new deal wherever he ends up sooner rather than later.

Now, two first-round picks sound steep, but if the Cardinals are into making this kind of move, they are firmly banking on next year’s pick being a late first-rounder after making a jump in the win-loss column in 2025.

As long as the contract extension doesn’t completely wreck Ossenfort’s overarching vision or Arizona’s future cap space, you make the deal and don’t look back.

But would Myles Garrett even want to come to Arizona?

There are quite a few tentacles to a Garrett trade, the first centering around his desire to play for a contender. As he said in his Monday statement, “my desire to win and compete on the biggest stages won’t allow me to be complacent.”

Does Arizona fit in that narrative?

How the roster is currently constructed, I’m not so sure. But toss in a game changer like Garrett (in addition to some added free agent help and draft picks this offseason) and that thinking at least shifts in the right direction.

Then there’s the willingness from Cleveland to make a deal, which from the sounds of it, doesn’t seem very high on its priority lists right now.

Last week during the Senior Bowl, executive vice president and general manager Andrew Berry reiterated to reporters that the Browns had no interest in trading the star — even if two first-round picks were involved.

“We envision him going from Cleveland to Canton when his career is over,” Berry, whose words were used against him in Garrett’s public trade request, said.

So even if Garrett wants to call the Valley — or anywhere but Cleveland — home in 2025 and beyond, there will likely be that snag to deal with.

Even if that is the case, though, Arizona should still kick the tires on a Garrett addition.

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Just how aggressive should Cardinals be in trading for pass rusher Myles Garrett?