Myles Garrett has received nothing but praise and accolades since being traded to the Los Angeles Rams in June. He won the Best NFL Player ESPY and was voted the No. 1 player in the league on the NFL’s Top 100 Players list, ratcheting up the hype ahead of his first season in Southern California.
He was also the focal point of a new poll of NFL coaches, general managers, executives and coordinators conducted by The Athletic’s Jeff Howe.
Howe asked 20 NFL coaches and execs to pick the non-quarterback they would trade two first-round picks for. Of the 18 responses recorded, five picked Garrett, two more than any other player.
Additionally, Howe polled coaches and executives on the three best defensive closers in the NFL. Garrett, once again, finished
first, receiving 16 votes from the 17 respondents. The next-closest player was Will Anderson Jr., with 11 votes, followed by Maxx Crosby with four.
Aaron Donald received two votes in this poll, too.
Playing on some bad Browns teams that rarely led, Garrett didn’t exactly play with many leads in the fourth quarter, but one head coach thinks he’s going to deliver in the clutch for the Rams.
“Myles hasn't been in that situation a lot, but I think he will be,” a head coach said. “I don't see how he doesn't show up in those moments.”
Fresh off a season where he had a league-record 23 sacks, Garrett could put up eye-popping numbers again in 2026. The Rams are expected to be one of the best teams in football and should be playing with the lead often, allowing Garrett to pin his ears back and rush the quarterback without much fear of the ball being handed off.
And when it’s late in the game and the opponent is playing catch-up, Garrett will likely be what Donald was to the Rams during his prime: a closer.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams star Myles Garrett dominates poll of NFL coaches and execs
