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Analyst gives Rams an 'F' for Myles Garrett-Jared Verse trade
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- Analyst gives Rams an 'F' for Myles Garrett-Jared Verse trade
Despite being one of the biggest stories of the offseason, the Los Angeles Rams have yet to witness the payoff from their trade for two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett. Garrett, who hasn't played for the team on U.S. soil, looked poor in his debut down in Melbourne, Australia.
As it would turn out, the long-term knee issue Garrett was nursing throughout training camp and preseason – an issue that severely limited his participation in those activities – was an injury that needed arthroscopic surgery to properly fix. And Garrett has been out ever since, missing the last seven games.
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That's why Sports Illustrated's Mike Kadlick gave the Rams a grade of F, while giving the Cleveland Browns a grade of A+ for the trade involving the star defender. Kadlick does go on to talk about Verse's lack of statistical production since the trade, but Garrett's absence paints the picture for the way-too-early report card.
While Los Angeles is reportedly optimistic about getting Garrett back to practice this week, his appearance in just one game makes it difficult to call this trade anything but a loss for the Rams so far. On the flip side, even as Verse has struggled to begin his first season with the Browns, he's still just 25 years old with two Pro Bowls under his belt and plenty of football still ahead of him. Cleveland also now owns picks of the Rams in three consecutive drafts, all of which could become increasingly valuable if Los Angeles continues to struggle and their championship window continues to close.
Good job, Andrew Berry. You won this one in a landslide, at least so far.
We don't know what will happen when Garrett finally makes his domestic debut, but the fact that the Rams have been able to hold up so far implies he could be the seismic-shifting piece the Rams need to compete in the NFC. That's especially true after the Seattle Seahawks added Quentin Nelson, the San Francisco 49ers added DeForest Buckner, and the Chicago Bears added Jeremy Simmons over the last two weeks.
The Rams opened Garrett's 21-day practice window on Wednesday, meaning his return should be near. For the Browns and Verse, they're in the middle of a hotly contested playoff race in the AFC.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Analyst gives Rams an 'F' for Myles Garrett-Jared Verse trade
