​For the Los Angeles Rams to pull off their blockbuster trade for NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, they sent star defender Jared Verse to Cleveland. Verse, who earned the 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors and has been a two-time Pro Bowler, was expected to make a significant leap in sack production. But that jump didn’t come. Byron Young actually tallied double-digit sacks for the Rams, while Garrett arrived in Los Angeles after posting a league-record 23 sacks last season. On paper, the move looks brilliant, but the true impact remains to be seen.
CBS Sports’ Tyler Sullivan ranked Verse 14th among the top 25 players under 25, which raises a major question. “Jared Verse was a key piece in the biggest blockbuster trade of the offseason,” Sullivan wrote. “While most of the attention centered on Myles Garrett going from the Browns to the Rams, Verse is a strong consolation prize for Cleveland, along with the slew of draft picks included in the deal, including a 2027 first-rounder.” Verse has established himself as a premier pass rusher, recording the sixth-highest pressure rate in the NFL since entering the league. He’s also solid against the run, posting the second-best run-stop win rate among edge rushers last season. He’s a well-rounded talent with the potential for All-Pro elevation and earned Pro Bowl honors in each of his first two NFL campaigns.
The fundamental question remains: did the Rams sacrifice the next eight years of a potential generational talent to acquire a player who may be nearing his prime? Verse sits in a precarious position because, despite the accolades and potential, he hasn’t yet transformed into the game wrecker many expected. He’s undeniably a star, yet his lack of advanced pass-rush moves has kept him from entering the sport’s upper echelon. It could be a matter of Verse’s development, or perhaps the Rams’ secondaries and overall defensive structure hampered him. By the end of the 2025 season, the Rams’ defense showed vulnerabilities, and that likely contributed to a dip in his sack production.
Verse now finds himself in a division that leans heavily on the passing game, and even with the AFC North’s offensive firepower, the conferences’ teams have often struggled with defenses that can keep them balanced. He remains a crucial piece on Cleveland’s loaded defense, a unit that can challenge opponents with pressure and disruption.
Meanwhile, Garrett is entering his 30s with his 31st birthday approaching in December. He is a supreme athlete who maintains exceptional conditioning, yet the nature of his position demands a grueling workload, and he has already played in 134 NFL games. Garrett’s talent is undeniable, but pass-happy offenses can still neutralize even the best edge rusher, especially if a defense as a whole can’t pressure quickly enough.
Verse’s sack totals have been a factor, but his true impact lies in his ability to generate pressures, a facet where he clearly excels. The NFL’s evolving offenses—especially those under coaches who run schemes similar to Kyle Shanahan’s—have exposed gaps in the Rams’ defense, and the team’s struggles against quick, precise passing concepts have been repeatedly highlighted. The NFC West, with its frequent testing of aerial attacks, will test Verse’s capacity to translate pressure into consistent disruption.
In Cleveland, Garrett is stepping into a defense anchored by a strong front that can sustain pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Rams, by contrast, will lean on Garrett to alter the balance of games by disrupting the pocket and forcing hurried decisions. But there’s a caveat: even a player of Garrett’s caliber can be stymied by high-tempo offenses and rapid-release schemes. The real measure will be whether Garrett’s presence translates into more wins in a division where teams frequently emphasize the pass.
As the season unfolds, the combination of Garrett’s elite rush potential and Verse’s developing skill set will be watched closely. The trade’s true verdict will come down to whether the Rams seized a long-term cornerstone or gave up the chance to cultivate a franchise-defining star in Verse for a proven, still-elite edge who may be peaking soon. The question remains whether Cleveland benefits more in the long run from Verse’s growth and the surrounding talent, or if Los Angeles will reap the benefits of Garrett’s undeniable impact as he enters the later stage of his prime. The next steps will determine if the deal becomes a landmark move for the Rams or a cautionary tale about trading away a young talent for a veteran ace.