Browns’ executive made a simple decision that has the fanbase up in arms about Myles Garrett all over again

Browns fans were in an uproar at the team over the Myles Garrett trade all over again this week.

The Myles Garrett trade remains a sore subject for some Cleveland Browns fans, and the reality of that reared its head Wednesday when Browns assistant general manager Catherine Hickman spoke to the media.

Hickman doesn’t speak to the media often, and this was one of the first times she addressed reporters since the Garrett trade went down on June 1.

Cleveland sent Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams for defensive end Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round draft pick, and a 2029 third-round draft pick. The June 1 date made the deal easier for the Browns to execute financially. Still, the Browns traded away a future first-ballot Hall of Famer coming off a record-breaking 23-sack season.

Hickman showed up to her first media availability of the season wearing a shirt that read “Los Angeles made me do it.” The shirt immediately went viral on Twitter, with Browns fans wondering if it was some kind of troll job directed at them.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

The relationship between leaders and results is undeniable and inescapable. https://t.co/jaDOM6WeY7

How do you wear that sweater speaking to the media after the Myles deal https://t.co/P70m4QSC1S

Probably not a good idea to wear a “Los Angeles made me do it” sweatshirt after trading our best player to Los Angeles

It would be silly to think an assistant general manager of an NFL team is actually trolling her own fan base, but that’s the way some fans took it, and the reaction was easy to find on social media. Hickman probably should have thought a little deeper about the message on her shirt heading into the press conference. Then again, it’s the kind of simple thing that may not have crossed her mind. In her position, though, anything she does is going to be torn apart, and Browns fans weren’t very accepting of it.

The Browns won’t know if the Garrett trade works out for them until down the road, when they spend their draft picks from the deal and see what those selections become. It’s going to take a few years to evaluate.

Cleveland hopes the picks from the Garrett trade could help land a franchise quarterback. If the Browns can find that guy through the capital they acquired, the trade was 100% worth it. On the flip side, if Garrett helps the Rams win another Super Bowl, it’s very much worth it for Los Angeles to have given up Verse and three draft picks.

Time will tell which side comes out ahead.