Trading becomes "legal" in the NFL at 4:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on March 12 — and the undisputed top prize therein is, or could be, defensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns.
Unfortunately, Garrett is not a free agent — which means that any team who wants him can obtain him only by incurring a ruinous loss of future draft choices.
And who might these teams be?
Garrett, who is narcissistically demanding a trade because he wants to play for a "contender" — never mind that as recently as 2023 Cleveland went 11-6 and made the playoffs — could be headed for the Bills, the Chargers, or the Commanders, if any of those teams are willing to meet Cleveland's price, which could be as steep as first-, second-, and third-round picks in 2025, 2026, and 2027.
As if to prove that anyone can bet on anything these days (except in Utah), Washington is the favorite to land Garrett, at +300. Other teams that have quoted odds range from the Eagles at +450 to the Chiefs at +1400.
(Shouldn't such trades be "condemned for life" after the DeShaun Watson fiasco?).
But what about the Eagles, you ask?
Mike McCormack's "Amazin' Mess" of the 1970s still resonates deeply in Philadelphia (it definitely cost Dick Vermeil at least one ring while he was there) — the Eagles did not have a pick until the third round in 1974, not until the seventh round (!) in 1975, not until the fourth round in 1976, not until the fifth round in 1977, and not until the third round in 1978 — and it very likely still resonates with Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman today. Besides, wouldn't re-signing linebacker Zack Baun be simpler? And since Garrett will be, as Sarah Orne Jewett (after whom a prominent street on Staten Island is named) wracked on the lee shore of 30 come December 29, conjures up images of the infamous Roman Gabriel trade from the days of yore, maybe it will be anything but a good idea?
(Indeed, when it comes to draft picks, Lurie and Roseman are trying to move in the opposite direction by trading edge rusher Bryce Huff to Atlanta for, say, a fourth-round pick).
But first things first — and that means the combine, which begins on Thursday; and as usual, the wide receivers will be in the spotlight, headed by Isaiah Bond of Texas, Emeka Egbuka of Ohio State, and Oregon's Tez Johnson. Top prospects at other positions include quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders of Colorado (Deion's son) and Cam Ward of Miami (Fla.) and running back Ashton Jeanty of Boise State. On the defensive side, watch for defensive end Mykel Williams (who, since he played his college ball at Georgia, could end up with the Eagles), linebacker Jalon Walker (also a Georgia Bulldog), and Travis Hunter of Colorado (who could even play at wide receiver).
The owners were definitely stuck with a lemon when Judge David Doty ruled in favor of the NFLPA in 1993 on the subject of free agency; but the owners, much to their credit, served lemonade by turning free agency into a spring festival — and a decade later they even gave the festival a house organ, NFL Network.
So get ready: the festival is about to begin.
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