How the Rams Are Now Super Bowl Favorites After Blockbuster Myles Garrett Trade

After trading for Trent McDuffie and Myles Garrett, the Los Angeles Rams are the betting favorites to win Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium.

How the Rams Are Now Super Bowl Favorites After Blockbuster Myles Garrett Trade

Myles Garrett and Matthew Stafford (Image via IMAGO)

The Los Angeles Rams were among the favorites to win Super LXI. After trading for DE Myles Garrett, they are now the betting favorite (at +600) to win the Super Bowl for a second time in five years.

The Rams came very close to winning it last year. At the NFC Championship game, they faced the Seattle Seahawks, who won the game 31-27.

LA received positive news when veteran quarterback and reigning league MVP, Matthew Stafford, committed to the team for one more year. This gave Rams the leverage to go all in on a luxury player.

The Rams needed an anchor man on defense. And who better than the two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Myles Garrett? Garrett has been a great servant to the Cleveland Browns until last year, when he requested a trade. After the Browns declined to entertain his wish, they made him the highest-paid non-quarterback (later overtaken by Micah Parsons) in football (four-year, $160 million extension with $123.5 million guaranteed).

Garrett also had a no-trade clause in his contract, meaning the Browns couldn’t trade him unless he approved of it. So, did Garrett ask to be traded once again? Jeremy Fowler of ESPN revealed that the Browns have fielded repeated calls from the Rams ever since the turn of the year. This was a matter of the Browns looking at the value they were getting in return from the Rams.

The Rams agreed to include third-year and two-time Pro Bowl edge Jared Verse in the deal, including a first-round, second-round, and third-round draft pick. Verse posted 7.5 sacks and 27 quarterback hits this past season.

Moreover, ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi mentioned that Garrett was “open to new scenery” and the Browns’ not hiring Jim Schwartz as head coach “didn’t help matters.”

Garrett had a strong relationship with Schwartz, and he felt the veteran deserved a shot at being the head coach. Under Schwartz’s supervision, Garrett set the new sack record, overtaking Michael Strahan last year. He wasn’t happy when Schwartz left the building.

Fortunately, he will not have the same issue in LA. Sean McVay is considered the best young coach in the NFL. With already one ring in the bag, McVay is eyeing another as quickly as possible. Moreover, time is running out on Stafford’s career, so that’s why they went all in for Garrett.

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Myles Garrett makes the Los Angeles Rams Super Bowl favorites

The Rams nearly went the distance last season. The offense led by Stafford under center, Puka Nacua and Davante Adams as receivers, and Kyren Williams as running back, averaged 394.6 yards per game (a league best) and scored 65 touchdowns (most in the league).

How the Rams Are Now Super Bowl Favorites After Blockbuster Myles Garrett Trade
Myles Garrett (Image via IMAGO)

However, the defense didn’t operate with the same standard. For example, the Rams’ D surrendered 321 passing yards and three passing touchdowns against the Seahawks in the conference title game.

So, GM Les Sneed went to work. He went to Kansas City and gave the Chiefs a 2026 first-round, fifth, and sixth-round pick and a 2027 third-round pick to acquire All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie. McDuffie, a two-time Super Bowl winner, tallied 246 tackles, 34 passes defended, and 5 sacks in his four years with the Chiefs. That sorted out the secondary.

Next, they needed a pass-rushing monster. Verse and Kobie Turner did a solid job, limiting the rushing TDs to just 8 all year. But they struggled to amass sacks. So, they went out and got the best sack maker in the game. Garrett has 125.5 sacks since entering the league as the first overall pick in 2017. He’s a seven-time All-Pro and a seven-time Pro Bowler. He only makes the team even stronger.

Moments after the trade became national news, FOX Sports released its latest Super Bowl LXI odds. The Los Angeles Rams, with +550/+600, are the favorites to win Super Bowl LXI in their own backyard, the SoFi Stadium.

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