Asked at the Ravens’ mandatory minicamp about Myles Garrett leaving the AFC North, Lamar Jackson recalled being sacked four times by Garrett on Nov. 16, 2025—and said his first reaction was, “Yes!” Garrett was traded to the Los Angeles Rams last week in exchan
The last time Lamar Jackson and Myles Garrett faced each other in Baltimore, it didn’t feel like a win was coming so easily.
On Nov. 16, 2025, Garrett sacked Jackson four times. The Ravens still outlasted the Cleveland Browns 23-16. but Garrett made sure Jackson didn’t get to enjoy the victory the way you’d hope after a hard-fought finish. Last season. Garrett shattered the NFL’s all-time single-season sack record with 23 sacks. and he earned his second AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. Jackson was on the other end of 5.5 of those sacks.
So when Garrett’s next chapter arrived—leaving the AFC North for the Los Angeles Rams—Jackson didn’t sound surprised by the relief.
At the Ravens’ mandatory minicamp Wednesday, Jackson was asked about his initial reaction to Garrett exiting the division. “I was like, ‘Yes!’” Jackson said. Then, almost immediately, he pointed out what comes next. “But then we got the other guy from the Rams, [Verse]. He’s good, too. Shouts out to him. Shouts out to Myles. Congratulations on that. But yes!. That’s awesome!”.
Garrett’s departure came after the Browns traded him to the Rams last week in exchange for star pass rusher Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round draft pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a 2029 third-round pick.
Nobody. the moment seemed to suggest. was happier about that trade than Jackson’s division rival-cum-former foe: Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Burrow and Jackson weren’t reacting in a vacuum, either. Verse arrives as a proven threat in his own right. In two seasons since Los Angeles selected him in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Verse has already been named the 2024 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and is a two-time Pro Bowler.
Garrett’s path through this deal also carries its own weight. The Browns drafted him with the No. 1 overall pick in 2017. He leaves Cleveland with 125.5 career sacks, the most in franchise history, and now heads to Los Angeles with an opportunity to win his first Super Bowl ring.
The shift is simple on paper and jarring in practice: Jackson remembers Garrett’s effect on game days, while the Ravens now look toward Verse—someone Jackson says is “good, too”—as a new kind of pressure on the other side.
Lamar Jackson Myles Garrett Ravens AFC North Cleveland Browns Los Angeles Rams Jared Verse AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year NFL trade