Inside: Potential landing spots for Myles Garrett and Cooper Kupp, plus Tom Brady’s current rookie season and two more Super Bowl props.
Trivia: Since 1976, only one NFC team made the Super Bowl without any players on that year’s All-Pro team. Who? Answer is at the end of this article.
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Trade talks: Garrett, Kupp and Stafford could move
“The goal was never to go from Cleveland to Canton,” Myles Garrett wrote in his public statement demanding a trade, explicitly refuting this comment from a week earlier by GM Andrew Berry: “We envision [Garrett] going from Cleveland to Canton when his career is over.” Ouch.
Instead, the 29-year-old reigning Defensive Player of the Year said his goal “has always been to compete for and win a Super Bowl,” which doesn’t seem likely in Cleveland. The Browns haven’t used a first-round pick in three years, key players are aging and Deshaun Watson complicates everything.
The asking price for Garrett will not be cheap. My colleagues concocted 10 proposals that make sense. Here are three:
- Buffalo: Two first-round picks, DE A.J. Epenesa and CB Kaiir Elam, plus some pick swaps that favor Cleveland.
- Chicago: Two firsts and a second.
- Washington: Two firsts, OT Brandon Coleman and DT Daron Payne, with the Browns including two late-round picks.
Berry previously said he wouldn’t listen to offers for Garrett, even those with multiple first-round picks. And this week, when The Athletic polled NFL executives and coaches to better understand Garrett’s value, we found that the Browns still don’t intend to trade their unstoppable star pass rusher.
While any Garrett trade immediately adds $36 million in dead money to the Browns’ 2025 salary cap (which is already $30 million over the limit), a rebuild with a plethora of picks is exactly what Cleveland needs. This might be Berry’s best shot at saving his own job.
The story for Rams receiver Cooper Kupp is different. He was the MVP of a Super Bowl win by Los Angeles, but yesterday, he shared that the team is looking to trade him.
“I don’t agree with the decision and always believed it was going to begin and end in L.A.,” the 31-year-old wrote on social media.
As Jourdan Rodrigue explains, in the Rams’ eyes, Kupp’s dip in production did not justify his salary — he caught just six passes in their two playoff games, but carries a 2025 cap hit of $29.7 million. The 2021 Offensive Player of the Year is unlikely to fetch more than a mid- to late-round pick. The Commanders, Jaguars or Cowboys could pick up the phone.
The future of Matthew Stafford is also in question. The 36-year-old has just $4 million in guarantees for 2025, and neither GM Les Snead or HC Sean McVay committed to the veteran quarterback in recent media appearances. Both Stafford and Kupp are past their primes, but can still be valuable additions for many teams — perhaps the Steelers, who could even use both.
As we turn to Dianna for more trade intel, Kupp’s teammate describes how we’re all feeling:
What Dianna’s Hearing: Browns already knew
We were all taken by surprise when Garrett made a public trade request yesterday morning. Well, all of us except for the Browns, who already knew their superstar pass rusher wanted out.
The Browns, according to a team source, are adamant that they won’t trade him. However, the team also knows this isn’t a contract ploy by Garrett, who is in line to become the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. (His current deal ends after next season.) He genuinely wants out.
As for the timeline, if the Browns are going to relent, most teams would prefer to get a deal done before the new league year begins on March 12. As one exec put it: “It’s gonna be a wild few weeks.”
Back to you, Jacob.
Inside Tom Brady’s $375M journey
This year’s Super Bowl marks the finale of Tom Brady’s debut broadcasting season, the first of a 10-year contract worth $375 million to him, plus stock options.
Yesterday, media guru Andrew Marchand shared the inside story of how Brady landed the deal and why Fox believes he’s worth it. Two points stood out:
- After Fox lost Troy Aikman and Joe Buck to ESPN, the idea of going with the cheaper (and popular) Greg Olsen made sense. “But that is just not in the Murdoch Fox Sports DNA,” writes Andrew.
- Fox is willing to bet big. When they signed John Madden in 1994, he was the biggest star in football broadcasting, and his contract paid him as such — more per year than any NFL player at the time.
Fox benefits from Brady’s credibility, and has been milking utilizing it often. Their rookie announcer has participated in their coverage of college football, IndyCar and even the United Football League.
He also has significant pull with sponsors and the NFL. “If Brady is needed to play a round of golf or make a call, he is about as good of a closer as you could find,” explains Andrew.
Olsen might be a better broadcaster, but obviously, that doesn’t really matter. Though, to be fair, the new guy has improved all year. What else would we expect?
Super Bowl props, pt. 4/7
Even if you’re not into betting, there’s plenty for NFL fans to learn from my colleagues’ excellent work in that field. Two examples in today’s prop-bet picks:
Travis Kelce, first player to 20 yards. Here’s what J.J. Bailey wrote about one of his five most entertaining player props: “For the edge-of-your-sofa factor, [first to 20 yards] is the best bet on the board.” If I’m in a Super Bowl, I’m targeting my most reliable option early. Patrick Mahomes and I clearly have that in common, as Kelce received the first target in last year’s Super Bowl.
Mahomes over 5.5 rushing attempts. Notably more aggressive on the ground in the playoffs (with at least six rushes in each of the Chiefs’ last five postseason games), Mahomes now faces an Eagles front with a consistent pass rush. Scott Phillips called this in his review of Chiefs Super Bowl props.
To keep you updated on all things Super Bowl, The Athletic is live from New Orleans at 5 p.m. ET each day on YouTube.
Yesterday’s most-clicked: Dane Brugler on Senior Bowl standouts by position.
Trivia answer: The 2007 Giants are the only NFC team since 1976 to make a Super Bowl without a single All-Pro player. They upset Brady’s undefeated Patriots, who fielded four first-team All-Pros. Rewatch that game here.
For more trivia, see if you can beat our Super Bowl quiz.
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(Photos: Jason Miller, Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
