No Desperation; No Myles Garrett
June 2nd, 2026
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BY IRA KAUFMAN
Don’t go there, Buc fans.
Two major trades went down in the NFL on Monday, deals that could shape the playoff picture for the Rams and Patriots.
Myles Garrett.
Looking to the future, Cleveland sent Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett to Los Angeles, which is all-in behind 38-year-old Matt Stafford. The price was steep, with the Browns receiving three draft picks and stellar defensive end Jared Verse.
New England finally closed the deal on elite wide receiver A.J. Brown, sending two picks to Philadelphia, including a first-round choice in 2028.
Would Garrett look good in a Tampa Bay uniform, coming off the right edge opposite Rueben Bain? Of course. He’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer who has averaged almost a sack per game during his 9-year career.
But the Browns weren’t going to sign off on the deal without Verse changing hands. At 25, he has already made two Pro Bowls and earned Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.
The Bucs don’t have a Jared Verse to seal the deal. YaYa Diaby is two years older and not as accomplished. To ship an all-time great like Garrett to Tampa, the Browns would have asked for three picks — and Tristan Wirfs.
That’s a non-starter.
Besides, the Rams don’t seem to value draft choices. Jason Licht loves ’em. The Rams were willing to meet Cleveland’s demands because of Stafford’s age and.their offensive firepower. They led the league in scoring and won 12 games before reaching the NFC title game, losing 31-27 at Seattle as the Seahawks rolled up 24 first downs and 396 yards.
Bucs GM Jason Licht.
While it’s true the Bucs reside in a far softer division, the Rams have averaged 11 wins in the past three seasons, Seattle and San Francisco must now deal with Garrett, a game-changing force who was the catalyst for a decent Browns defense.
Make no mistake: the Browns are 8-26 in the past two years because their offense stinks. Despite capturing four NFC South titles since 2021, the Bucs aren’t the Rams, who trounced Tampa Bay 34-7 last November. Baker Mayfield is 31, not 38, so the sense of urgency between the franchises is very different.
If the 2026 Rams don’t reach the Super Bowl, their season will be considered an utter failure. If the 2026 Bucs win a playoff game or two, no one will complain. Adding Garrett would not automatically make the Bucs favorites to win the NFC — and the cost would be prohibitive.
With six 1,000-yard seasons behind him, A.J. Brown is a big-time target. His career average of 76.5 receiving yards per game ranks 12th all-time, a few yards per game ahead of Mike Evans.
But even without Evans this fall, the Bucs have a solid receiving room that includes Emeka Egbuka, Chris Godwin, Jalen McMillan, Tez Johnson and rookie Ted Hurst. Giving up a future first-round pick for Brown, who turns 29 later this month, would have been a huge mistake for Tampa Bay. The Patriots were desperate for an accomplished downfield target. The Bucs are not.
Sometimes, the best move you can make is to sit tight.
The Bucs will welcome Garrett and the Rams into Raymond James Stadium on Jan. 3. Garrett’s a challenge to deal with for sure, but the Bucs were smart to remain on the sidelines and let the Rams mortgage their future.
June 2nd, 2026 at 9:57 am
Actually all the Bucs need is a ‘full time’ D/C.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:02 am
And a new HC.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:06 am
Umm, yep. Wrong head coach to have for a Myles Garrett or ANY accomplished and or Expensive edge rusher. A PURE WASTE of time, money, and draft picks until the change is made. Though I’m thanking “lucky stars” that Bain is now part of the family.
Hopefully Bain won’t suffer a fool for long. And hopefully minimal damage will be done to our promising, shiny, and new edge rusher until a “Dedicated” DC can Be Sure and Guide him to his STRENGTHS after this season coming.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:10 am
Mike Evans…he’s gotta be THRILLED with this LOL. I’d put the Rams (assuming no.major injuries) ahead of the Seahawks and the 49ers behind the Seahawks. Maybe that’s not fair to the Superbowl champs…But those are going to be dun division battles to watch. Good like ME 13.
Happy the Bucs didn’t give up a ransom for a dude like Garrett. Verse would be a different story. But even then, this place doesn’t seem to do Free Agency all that well since Brady, JPP and Suh. So probably better to see how the draft picks do.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:13 am
I can imagine it now: seeing one of the best pass rushers in NFL history out in coverage, because Terrible Todd does Bowles things.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:13 am
“If the 2026 Bucs win a playoff game or two, no one will complain.” In these here parts, a sub-.500 season paired with a pointless NFC South title is cause for raucus celebration and a marching band – a playoff win ? as likely as winning Powerball and would be greeted with the same stupefaction – the Bucs will not be sniffing the post-season this year – and that is OK with Glazers Licht Bowles – they are deeply entrenched in their positions and no amount of losing will dislodge them until they are good and ready
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:14 am
Even if we’d have traded Tristan straight across for Garrett I’d have packed up my toys and gone home. Great story Ira, and, I have a distinct feeling that Jan. 3rd game just might be one of those games that will be memorable. Joy, Joy!
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:18 am
Unlike the Rams and patriots, the Bucs are a year or two away from reaching the Superbowl. No need to panic or give up draft capital at this point.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:35 am
We had a great offseason, from a personnel perspective. While I hated losing Mike I still consider the offseason personnel grade an ‘A’. We filled gaps on defense with solid players on short term contracts with little to no risk. The draft was great.
We are not nearly in a position to send multiple first round draft choices to get Garrett and we don’t need brown.
For this year we need great health, some luck with turnovers, Robinson copying everything he can from coen’s 2024 successfully and an average defense. Then we might win 9-10 games.
For the long haul we need a new HC.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:36 am
Shaq Barrett did just fine under this DC. It’s always been a question of player quality, and now the Bucs finally have some higher quality players on defense than they have anytime recently. And the offense should be very good just by players coming back from injuries! Todd Bowles is a great coach. We wouldn’t have Mayfield without him.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:41 am
Glazers wont make any big moves unless they are 1 person away ala gruden or brady. This team wont be relevant again until Licht or the next gm builds it back up.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:42 am
I think the Rams gave up to much. We’ll see how it works out. They could’ve been one sack away from going to the SB. They think Garrett puts them over the top.
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:50 am
Amen,st.Pete!!He ain’t going nowhere soon,so dey either live with it or continue to bitch and moan!
Either way He dont care!
June 2nd, 2026 at 10:56 am
Bowles would have Garrett covering running backs and tight ends anyway.
June 2nd, 2026 at 11:04 am
Quick- name a player off Seattle’s defense last year…. I’d rather have 11 really good players than a superstar or 2. We have a superstar QB and that’s the position where you really need one. Can get by with really good players at almost every position.
June 2nd, 2026 at 11:10 am
Mid at Best
The Bucs are a mid team that is closer to the bottom that the top.
1. Baker isn’t the guy. He turns the ball over in the 4th.
2. Bowels is a horrible coach.
3. They don’t have any stars.
4. They lost Evans, LVD, and Dean.
They have some good young talent in sprinkled throughout the team but just roll players.
We know what a Super Bowl team looks like:
2002 – Sapp, Brooks, Barber, Lynch, Alstott
2020 – Brady, Gronk, Evans, Suh, JPP
The Bucs don’t have a lineup of gamechanging players. They have a bunch of good players … same as evey other team.
June 2nd, 2026 at 11:31 am
@Stpetematt
“Todd Bowles is a great coach” ??????
Do you mean a great DC the few years he had a head coach willing to go for it all with the game on the line?
If you want to give him his flowers for those years with BA and TB12, I will grant you that. Those were his best years by far.
But he’s not a great HC, especially when he’s also the DC. Five of eight years he’s below .500.
Great is not the phrase I would use to describe a HC that has been 8-9 twice in four years in Tampa.
June 2nd, 2026 at 11:35 am
Stpete…your world is going to be turned upside down this season.
Good luck!
June 2nd, 2026 at 11:43 am
This off-season looks like what I thought it’d look like. Mid level player signings with not a lot of money spent and no trading of future picks. This was the smart thing since the Bucs needlessly resigned their own players who haven’t performed well. A few coach and player contracts expire after this season and outside of a conference championship berth the Glazers will clean house. Bowles and this roster has gone as far as it can go and it continues to get worse every season.
The most exciting player on the team is gone and the best player on the team is on the OL. The Bucs have kicked the rebuilding can down the road since Brady left. By doing that you get a team that hovers around 500 but is never a threat to the top teams when it matters most.
The Bucs did the right thing not going after Garrett. This roster needs way more help than one superstar.
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:00 pm
Great breakdown Ira!
Jason has taken a bit of heat in the last couple of years for not making any blockbuster trades. Mostly betting on the guys we already had. The guys that most were clamoring for would have cost us too much. Especially those who were up there in years. I gotta agree with you and Jason sir. Besides Jason is due to be right keeping our dudes.
Go Bucs!
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:15 pm
We have Tristan Wirfs. Garrett will be invisible against the Bucs and will likely get hurt.
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:15 pm
Out of his 125.5 career sacks, a third of those were at the hands of his hapless division opponents. Only 38.5 have come against NFC teams. He’ll never get double digit sacks again!!
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:17 pm
We’re not worried about Garrett. We have a Hulk!!
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:24 pm
The more I think about it, the more I like the Browns side of the deal. It’s also very possible that the Browns misuse all of these draft picks, but that remains to be seen.
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:34 pm
Far too expensive. If the Bucs had pulled off a similar trade, I’d be calling for Licht’s head right now.
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:39 pm
Also… Joe wrote “…while it’s true that the Bucs reside in a far softer division…”
Wrong modifier and verbiage.
That should have been”…while it’s true that the Bucs reside in, by far, the softest division…”
And yet, KitKat-eating Incredibly Average Todd Bowles somehow… like Palpatine… returned.
June 2nd, 2026 at 1:54 pm
Garrett has a no trade clause. He would have to choose his team for anything to happen. He clearly chose the Rams and they found a way.
June 2nd, 2026 at 2:11 pm
It is also obvious Garrett would’ve never agreed to come play for a coach in way over his head, who thinks dropping his best pass rusher into deep zones is defensive genius.