Myles Garrett put the Browns future in question with his comments this week about rebuilding, wanting to compete
The Cleveland Browns are a storied franchise, but they have not had a positive story to tell since returning in 1999. A vast majority of the team’s history is steeped in the past before Art Modell turned on the city of Cleveland.
While we can add a number of players, including RB Nick Chubb, the recent Browns history is really led by two all-time greats:
- OT Joe Thomas
- DE Myles Garrett
Again, there are others but Thomas is already in the Hall of Fame and Garrett will be there. Garrett’s immediate future, after making it clear he does not want to rebuild, is more in question.
After putting the Browns in a difficult position, Garrett then went out and hit an impressive milestone. In many ways, that sequence describes Thomas’ time in Cleveland as well: difficult and impressive.
In 167 games with the Browns, Thomas saw one winning season and that came as a rookie in 2007. After that, the most wins by Cleveland was seven in 2014. If anyone knows what Garrett is going through, Thomas is that guy but he’s also the guy that finished his career with the Browns and did not ask or want to be traded.
With that backdrop, it was appropriate to ask Thomas what he thought about Garrett’s comments and potential trade demand. The Hall of Famer’s response might surprise you:
Basically, Thomas knows he could be great in his role even if the team was terrible which meant his legacy and contracts were not impacted by the team’s lack of success. The Browns legends noted the receiver position before saying how Garrett’s history would be impacted by continuing to play for a team that was mostly losing.
Garrett’s teams have had more success than Thomas’ time with two winning seasons and three more seasons of seven or more victories. That isn’t good enough for most franchises and, obviously, isn’t good enough for the reigning Defensive Player of the Year.
It is also noteworthy that Garrett’s statements, stating that he has informed the organization of his goals, could soften the blow with fans if he were ever to ask for a trade.
