Oct 12, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) warms up before the game at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Myles Garrett knew the Cleveland Browns weren't going to change last offseason.

It's why the former Defensive Player of the Year wanted a trade in the first place. He knew that his tremendous, field-tilting talents would continue to be wasted with one of football's worst and most incompetent organizations from top to bottom. But when the Browns turned around and gave Garrett nearly $124 million guaranteed on a new contract extension, he didn't blink. Garrett gladly took the Brinks truck of money. Any hint of the generational superstar pass-rusher's unhappiness in Cleveland was seemingly gone in a flash. How convenient.

That's what makes Garrett's complaints about the Browns' general ineptness after a 23-9 loss to the rival Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday ring so hollow. For example, his sarcasm about never getting to tee off on opposing passers with a double-digit lead:

There was Garrett complaining about the Browns losing in the same lifeless fashion they have for years:

To put the cherry on top, there was Garrett not shying away from a Joe Thomas comparison, a.k.a. a perennial All-Pro/Hall of Fame talent wasting away on a dreadful Browns team:

On some level, I feel for Garrett. I really do. Just because he chose a lucrative contract extension that will effectively keep him in Cleveland until he's ready to hang his shoulder pads up does not mean he doesn't have a right to be frustrated. We should all feel comfortable about speaking up about a toxic workplace.

Yet, again, Garrett CHOSE to sign that monster contract. He didn't HAVE to take the money from the Browns. Was it likely that the Browns would have ever traded Garrett, let alone find a partner willing to trade an exorbitant price for a 29-year-old pass-rusher? I'm not sure, but that's besides the point. Garrett knew what the Browns were, are, and may always be, and he put his name on that dotted line anyway.

At the very least, he gave away all his leverage for a meaningful career change the moment that happened. Full stop.

For that reason, it's hard to feel bad for Garrett. As they say, you reap what you sow.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Myles Garrett is reaping what he sowed with Browns

Reporting by Robert Zeglinski, For The Win / For The Win

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