Myles Garrett continues to make history.
On Wednesday, June 15, the former Texas A&M defensive end signed a five-year contract extension with the Cleveland Browns worth $125 million with $100 million in total guarantees and $50 million guaranteed at signing, according to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The deal makes him the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history.
Garrett confirmed the news with a video he posted to his social media pages.
“Now, it is time to prove it,” Garrett said in an interview with Cleveland radio station WTAM. “They have faith in me, and now, I have to give them a reason to have that faith.”
The new deal comes after Garrett served a six-game suspension for an incident in which he hit Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph in the head with Rudolph’s own helmet during a game. After the incident, Garrett alleged Rudolph had called him a racial slur.
Garrett told WTAM on Thursday he is putting the incident behind him.
“My life is much bigger than one moment,” Garrett said. “Me, the Browns and my teammates are going to look past that and go on to greater success. That will just be a small bump in the road.”
Despite the way last season ended, Garrett said the contract extension is a testament to the Browns’ continued trust in him.
“We had always talked about doing something like this, even from my first year in the league, and they always had confidence in me and my abilities,” Garrett told WTAM. “Now, that is just confirmation of that with them giving me this extension. I am just going to do my best to make it worth it for them but make me, my friends and my family proud.”
In 2017, Garrett became the first Aggie to go No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft, capping off a collegiate career in which he accumulated 141 tackles, 31 sacks and seven forced fumbles.