Myles Garrett Draws Aaron Donald Comparison Amid Comeback Rumors
Myles Garrett had the best season of his career last year, and he just turned 30.
He set the single-season sack record with 23 sacks, earned first-team All-Pro honors for the fifth time in his career, and won his second Defensive Player of the Year award. He also earned his seventh Pro Bowl nod and recorded 12 or more sacks for the sixth straight season, an NFL record.
Yet, despite cementing himself as the best pass rusher in football, the Cleveland Browns traded him at the beginning of June.
Cleveland sent Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for two-time Pro Bowler Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a 2029 third-round pick. It was one of the biggest and most surprising trades in NFL history, giving the Rams a game-wrecking edge presence to chase another Super Bowl and the Browns a promising young pass rusher plus a war chest of future draft capital.
And on Wednesday, July 8, Garrett just confirmed what we all already knew: he’s the best in the game.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler published his annual positional rankings after surveying executives, coaches, and scouts from around the NFL, and put Garrett at the top of the list, a unanimous No. 1 on every single ballot, which Fowler called a “clean sweep.”
Notably, however, one unnamed NFL coordinator likened him to another former Ram who’s been rumored to potentially be coming out of retirement for the 2026 season, Aaron Donald.
“He doesn’t get enough credit for just how powerful he is and how you feel that up close,” an NFL coordinator said. “Everyone talks about Aaron Donald’s power, but Myles is just as strong.”
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Donald has been actively fueling rumors of a potential NFL comeback for weeks, specifically since the Garrett trade.
He even recently reacted to a photoshopped photo wearing two Super Bowl rings with the cryptic eyes emoji.
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The retired Rams legend admitted that he’s “flirting with the idea” of returning to the league, and the idea of pairing him with Garrett would be scary for opposing defenses.
Donald has 111 career sacks and posted double-digit sacks in five straight seasons from 2017 to 2021, including a league-leading 20.5 sacks in 2018.
Garrett overpowers offensive linemen with his sheer strength and versatility, while Donald terrorizes quarterbacks from the interior with a rare blend of power and quickness few blockers could handle. Pairing the two would be nearly unstoppable.
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This story was originally published July 8, 2026 at 12:50 PM.