Myles Garrett’s First Rams Training Camp Is Here — What’s Changed Since the Blockbuster Trade

The Los Angeles Rams report to training camp Saturday, and for the first time, Myles Garrett will be doing it in blue and gold instead of brown and orange. Nearly two months after the Cleveland Browns sent the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year to Los Angeles, camp is where the actual work of turning a blockbuster trade into a functional defense begins.

The Rams and Browns finalized the deal in early June, with Los Angeles sending Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick to Cleveland in exchange for Garrett, according to ESPN. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero and ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported the trade before it became official.

Browns general manager Andrew Berry said in a statement that the team had “long taken the stance” that Garrett would be a one-team player for his whole career, but that discussions with the Rams intensified to the point where Cleveland felt the move fit its broader rebuild, per NFL.com. Garrett, in turn, posted a farewell message to Browns fans thanking the organization and the city for shaping him over his nine seasons there.

The trade came with a wrinkle that only came out afterward. Bleacher Report, citing Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot, noted the 2029 third-round pick the Browns received is conditional — it would jump to a first-rounder if Garrett is ever traded to another AFC North team. Cleveland built in protection against watching its former face of the franchise strengthen a division rival down the line.

Garrett didn’t hide his motivation for wanting out. At his introductory press conference on June 2, he made clear the move was about chasing a ring he never got close to in Cleveland. “I see a position to solidify myself here as well among the very greats,” Garrett said, according to therams.com. “I still have plenty of great years in front of me. And being able to cement that legacy not only as a football city here in L.A., but as an individual in winning DPOY and a Super Bowl or more, those things are definitely pressing on my mind.”

A Scheme Change Comes With the Uniform Change

Garrett spent his entire Cleveland career as a 4-3 defensive end. The Rams primarily run a 3-4 front, which means his first several weeks in Los Angeles were about relearning where to line up before they were about rushing the passer. Rams.com senior staff writer Stu Jackson reported that because Garrett didn’t arrive until the first week of June, his reps during the final two weeks of OTAs were limited mostly to individual drills as he acclimated, working initially with the outside linebackers rather than the traditional defensive line.

That transition matters for how the Rams plan to use him. Garrett is walking into a defense that already retooled its secondary this offseason by adding cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, and the coaching staff will spend camp figuring out how to fit a career 4-3 end into 3-4 rush-linebacker duties without blunting what makes him disruptive.

One data point Garrett himself has leaned on: according to ESPN Research cited by Rams.com, 47 of his 125.5 career sacks came while his team was trailing. Los Angeles finished with the NFL’s No. 1 offense in 2025 behind reigning MVP Matthew Stafford, which in theory should put Garrett on the field more often with a lead — and more often in the passing-down situations he says suit him best. “That did play into the decision as well,” Garrett said, per Rams.com. “Being able to make those game-changing plays to win the game for us, those are things that appeal to me.”

Verse, the player Cleveland got back in the deal, joins a Browns defense under new coordinator Mike Rutenberg and steps into the starting role Garrett vacated, according to the Browns’ own release on the trade.

What Camp Looks Like From Here

Rams veterans and rookies report to Loyola Marymount University on July 25 for a third straight year of camp there, with the regular season opening in Australia on September 10, per a team schedule report. Los Angeles is scheduled for two joint practices — against the Dallas Cowboys on August 11 and the New Orleans Saints on August 20 — before its preseason opener at Kansas City on August 15.

Garrett’s arrival has also revived an old storyline: whether Aaron Donald might come out of retirement to line up next to him. ESPN’s training camp preview noted that no one in the Rams organization has shut the idea down, though nothing beyond speculation supports it actually happening.

For now, the more concrete storyline is straightforward: the Rams enter camp as one of the favorites to win Super Bowl LX, largely because they were willing to trade a promising young pass rusher and three premium draft picks for a player already regarded as the best in the league at his position. Whether that bet pays off will start to take shape once pads come on in Los Angeles.