Jared Verse on replacing Myles Garrett in Cleveland: 'Myles is already taken'
The trade upset him at first. Then former Rams teammates talked him through it and the Browns made clear they wanted him specifically. Now the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year is set on being himself.
Jared Verse was the headline piece Cleveland demanded in the Myles Garrett trade, and he knows what that means: he's the guy replacing the best pass rusher in football. His framing of it is healthy. 'I'm not here to fill his shoes. I'm here to bring my own.'
How did Verse take the trade?
Hard, at first. Verse said the move was 'upsetting' initially, an understandable reaction for a 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year leaving a contender for a rebuild. Former Rams teammates Byron Young and Braden Fiske visited to help him process it, and his mindset shifted to 'time to work.' A Dayton native, Verse is now closer to home, and he took part in his first Browns practice on Wednesday.
What lifted his mood?
Being wanted. What turned the corner for Verse was Cleveland's insistence on acquiring him specifically. The Browns reportedly refused to make the Garrett deal unless Verse was included, and that level of intent landed: 'This is going to be the best version of me. Everything I've done this offseason, it's going to be great.' Being the centerpiece a team demanded, rather than a throw-in, reframed the whole move for him.
How does he see the comparison to Garrett?
He refuses to chase it, and his coach agrees. Verse said he wants to be 'the best version of me' rather than the next Garrett, and head coach Todd Monken reinforced it directly: 'Just be yourself. There's only one of you. Myles is already taken.' It's the right posture. Garrett is a generational talent and trying to replicate him is a trap; Verse being an ascending Pro Bowl edge in his own right is the realistic and valuable outcome.
What does Cleveland actually have in him?
A 25-year-old building block to anchor the post-Garrett defense. Verse came with a 2027 first, a 2028 second, and a 2029 third, but he's the piece that makes the rebuild real rather than purely theoretical. The Browns reset their timeline by moving Garrett, and Verse is the on-field foundation that reset is built on. Monken expects him to fit seamlessly into the scheme, which is the bet Cleveland made when it insisted on his inclusion.
Players in this story
Sources
- ESPN: Browns' Jared Verse - I'm not here to fill Myles Garrett's shoes
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