NEW ORLEANS — Myles Garrett isn’t yet ready to entertain the idea of joining the Detroit Lions.
In a candid moment on Wednesday, as the All-Pro pass rusher made his way through a series of interviews on Radio Row, Garrett dodged a question from the Detroit Free Press regarding his potential move to Detroit.
Garrett, who was in New Orleans to fulfill a sponsorship obligation, quickly moved past the question, as his marketing team guided him away from waiting reporters after finishing an appearance with Yahoo Sports. Just moments later, while he was sitting down with USA TODAY, the Free Press asked once again about the possibility of joining the Lions.
“Not really,” Garrett responded, continuing his march toward his next interview. When pressed again, he simply said, “Not yet.”
This comes after Garrett, the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, made waves earlier in the week by requesting a trade from the Cleveland Browns, the only team he has played for throughout his eight-year career.
A poll on freep.com this week revealed that 60% of Lions fans would be willing to offer at least two first-round picks in exchange for Garrett, though 29% believe the Lions are fine without him. Over 5,400 votes had been cast by Wednesday afternoon.
Analysis: Myles Garrett to Detroit? A Risk Worth Taking?
The Lions’ struggles with generating pressure were evident this season, ranking 28th in sack percentage (6.07%). The team faced significant setbacks with the injuries to key defensive ends, including Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport. Hutchinson, who led the Lions with 7½ sacks before breaking his leg in October, is expected to recover in time for the Lions’ OTA sessions in May. Meanwhile, Davenport, who tore his triceps earlier in the season, will become a free agent next month.
Garrett has been an absolute force on defense, notching 14 sacks in each of the past two seasons. With 102½ sacks over 117 career games, he is widely regarded as one of the NFL’s most disruptive players. Pairing him with Hutchinson could give the Lions one of the league’s most formidable pass rushes, but securing Garrett would come at a steep price.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes, during his end-of-season press conference, reaffirmed his commitment to building the team through the draft and developing talent. Drawing inspiration from Les Snead, his mentor and the general manager of the Los Angeles Rams, Holmes has stayed the course with this strategy, which led to the Lions emerging as one of the league’s best rosters. However, in response to the unexpected playoff exit, Holmes acknowledged the possibility of revisiting his approach:
“It’s a fair question,” Holmes said when asked about the potential for a shift in strategy. “Look, it’s probably relative of what you would say, ‘Is there a window?’ Or, ‘Is there a window that you need to stay in?’”
“I think that we’ve done a good job of doing our best we can to avoid windows,” he added. “And I feel really good about our young core and young nucleus of players. We feel great about our quarterback and how he’s playing, and the MVP-caliber season he’s having this year. So, I just think all of the pieces are in place that I don’t really feel walls closing in or a window.”
Garrett, who spent much of his Wednesday making media appearances, also revealed that he sought advice from LeBron James before requesting a trade. The two share the same sports agency, and Garrett emphasized his desire to join a championship-contending team, something he discussed earlier with Cleveland.com.
“I have a lot of love for Cleveland, but it’s always been about (competing) for championships, winning those big games, and winning Lombardis,” Garrett shared on The Rich Eisen Show, as quoted by NFL.com. “We haven’t had the opportunity to do that. That’s all I’m asking for.”
