On the Monday prior to Super Bowl LIX, Myles Garrett made public that he is requesting a trade from the Cleveland Browns. The news sent shockwaves on social media and in NFL circles. The media week leading up to the Super Bowl in New Orleans Louisiana had Myles Garrett speaking to anyone that would listen to him on radio row. The initial rection from Cleveland Browns fans was borderline panic and anxiety. A staged protest at Huntington Bank Field fell flat when only two people showed up to protest. Now that the proverbial dust has settled public perception of this ordeal has started to change.

First and foremost, Myles Garrett is a grown man, and he is well within his rights to ask the Cleveland Browns for a trade. However, the Cleveland Browns are in no way obligated to grant him the trade. In other words, Myles Garrett has no leverage in this situation. He is under contract for two more years with the Cleveland Browns and for the following two years the Browns can franchise tag him. Myles Garrett is under contractual control by the Cleveland Browns for the next four years. The salary cap dead money hit for the Browns to trade Myles Garrett is $36 million dollars. That on top of Deshaun Watson’s contract would devastate the Browns. In other words, the trade is not happening, and Myles Garrett knows this. He knows that he has no leverage and that the Browns have no incentive to trade him. And as Garrett did more interviews, his motivations became clearer.

It is understandable that a professional athlete wants to win and be a champion. LeBron James and Kevin Durant did leave their home to chase a ring. But their public image was never the same after doing that. LeBron had to come back to Cleveland and win a championship to repair his image. Durant has still yet to recover. Myles Garrett is coming across as a more selfish athlete that wants to chase a ring instead of winning it with the team drafted him. He could very well chase that ring and win it somewhere else. But it wouldn’t be the same as winning it here at his home. His legacy is what he is concerned about. And there would be no bigger legacy than winning a Super Bowl in Cleveland. Winning Super Bowls are easier said than done. And chasing a ring is taking the path of least resistance and there is no real legacy in that. True champions don’t join their rivals, they defeat them!