What's Next: Why Myles Garrett Can Now Become the GOAT Pass-Rusher

The Los Angeles Rams’ blockbuster trade will allow the football world to see the NFL’s best pass-rusher on the league’s biggest and brightest stage. By luring Cleveland Browns superstar Myles Garrett to Hollywood to help the reigning MVP make a final run at the Lombardi Trophy, the Rams are giving the seven-time Pro Bowler and two-time Defensive Player of the Year a stage that will not only cement his credentials as a future gold jacket wearer, but he could attain "G.O.A.T" status as the most talented pass-rusher to ever don the pads. 

As a former NFL player who played with Hall of Famers Bruce Smith, Reggie White and Derrick Thomas, and worked with the Carolina Panthers when a young Julius Peppers embarked on his Hall of Fame career, I am uniquely qualified to make that assessment based on watching and benefiting from their dominance and destruction at the point of attack. Considering three members of the aforementioned quartet rank among the top four in sacks all time (No. 1: Smith, 200.0; No. 2: White, 198.0; No. 4: Peppers, 159.5), the comparisons for Garrett are warranted based on his performance and production through his first nine seasons. 

Garrett, the NFL’s single-season record holder (23), has totaled 125.5 career sacks in 134 games. He has been the model of consistency, with eight seasons with at least 10 sacks and 149 tackles for loss, including a whopping 55 since 2024 alone. There's only one real blemish on his playing résumé, and it's beyond his control: He's appeared in just three playoff games. 

As the featured playmaker for former Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, the 6-foot-4, 272-pounder attacked offensive guards and tackles like an NBA small forward running an isolation play on the wing.