For years, Myles Garrett stood as the undisputed centerpiece of the Cleveland Browns’ defense. Off the field, he was often viewed as a quiet, intellectual titan. However, a fresh look inside the locker room reveals that while Garrett commanded immense respect, he may have lacked the genuine affection of the men playing alongside him.
What Mary Kay Cabot Said About Myles Garrett’s Time in Cleveland
Mary Kay Cabot, the longtime Browns insider for Cleveland.com, shed light on this complex dynamic. According to Cabot, the absence of public outpourings of support isn’t an accident. It is a reflection of a locker room culture where Garrett was deeply revered for his skill but largely detached on a personal level.
“When you talk about the fact that [fans] haven’t seen guys write or say a lot about Myles, I think that there are some reasons for that,” Cabot noted.
One major catalyst for this underlying friction dates back to his behavior during a previous Super Bowl cycle, where Garrett made it clear behind the scenes, and through the media grapevine, that he was looking for an exit strategy.
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“If you look back to the previous year when he went all around the Super Bowl asking to get the heck out of Dodge, I don’t think that necessarily said ‘team building’ to a lot of guys,” Cabot explained.
When a team leader appears to have one foot out the door, the emotional bridge between him and the team develops fractures. While players still counted on Garrett to disrupt opposing quarterbacks on Sundays, the off-field bonding simply evaporated.
Cabot clarified that this wasn’t a matter of active animosity, but rather a profound lack of warmth. “I’ve also been told that even though Myles was very well-respected and, in some cases, revered, he wasn’t necessarily loved by his teammates,” she said. “He didn’t inspire that warm and fuzzy, big, booming kind of love that some people have for their teammates.”
Statistically, Garrett’s resume reads like a first-ballot Hall of Fame speech: 134 games, five first-team All-Pro selections, two NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards, and 125.5 career sacks. In 2025 alone, he put together a historic campaign, shattering records with a league-leading 23.0 sacks and a staggering 39 quarterback hits.
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But it seems, through Cabot, that Garrett didn’t necessarily build the emotional bond, which eventually didn’t inspire personal loyalty from his peers. Ultimately, Garrett’s Cleveland stint will be remembered for its staggering production, but the silence from his former teammates speaks volumes about the isolating nature of his stardom.
