Cleveland Browns assistant general manager Catherine Hickman drew criticism online on September 2 after appearing at a roster-related media availability in a distressed sweatshirt reading “LOS ANGELES MADE ME DO IT.” The timing made the message hard for some Browns fans to ignore: three months earlier, Cleveland had traded franchise pass rusher Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams.
What is verifiable is more limited than some of the reaction suggested. Hickman wore the sweatshirt while discussing the Browns’ 53-man roster and practice squad, and the phrase quickly became a social-media talking point. None of the reporting reviewed by FSN quotes Hickman or the Browns saying the shirt was intended as a reference to the Garrett trade.
Updated September 14, 2026: This article has been rewritten to separate documented facts from speculation about Hickman’s intent, correct the context of the 2019 Freddie Kitchens comparison, add the exact terms of the Myles Garrett trade and update Cleveland’s status after Week 1.
What happened at Catherine Hickman’s September 2 media availability
The Cleveland Browns made Hickman available to discuss the finalized 53-man roster and practice squad ahead of the regular season. Cleveland’s own media page describes the September 2 segment as a discussion of those roster decisions.
During that appearance, Hickman wore a gray distressed sweatshirt with the words “LOS ANGELES MADE ME DO IT” across the front. CBS Sports and other outlets highlighted the clothing choice after images and clips circulated online. The reaction centered on the coincidence between the message and Cleveland’s June trade of Garrett to Los Angeles.
The distinction between coincidence and intent is important. CBS Sports described the message as an apparent unintentional statement. Other coverage noted that the shirt could simply have been a fashion choice. Neither Hickman nor the Browns was quoted in the reviewed coverage tying it to Garrett.
Why the phrase landed differently after the Myles Garrett trade
The sensitivity around the words “Los Angeles” comes from the magnitude of the Garrett transaction, not from anything Hickman said at the podium. On June 1, Cleveland traded Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams for defensive end Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick.
That was not a routine roster move. Garrett left Cleveland as the franchise’s career sack leader with 125.5 and after setting the NFL single-season sack record with 23 in 2025. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year had been the face of the Browns’ defense for most of his nine seasons with the team.
For fans still evaluating whether Cleveland received enough value for a player of Garrett’s stature, seeing a senior football executive wearing a Los Angeles-themed message was always likely to invite interpretation. That helps explain the reaction. It does not prove the shirt was a comment on the trade.
The press conference itself was about Cleveland’s current roster
The viral image also overshadowed what Hickman was actually there to discuss. Reporting from the session focused on roster construction, including why wide receiver Luke Floriea was not retained after the preseason and what newly added edge rusher Sam Williams could bring to the defense.
Hickman described roster building as a process involving many layers rather than any single player decision. She also characterized Williams as a physical, competitive, high-motor player who could contribute on defense and special teams.
That football context matters because Cleveland was moving into the season with Verse as its new starting left defensive end. The Browns’ Week 1 depth chart listed Verse atop that spot, with Williams behind him. In other words, the media session was partly about the post-Garrett defensive roster, even though there is no evidence in the reviewed reporting that Hickman’s sweatshirt was meant to comment on how Garrett left.
Hickman remains part of the Browns’ football leadership
The original version of this article asked whether the episode might affect Hickman’s standing in the organization. There was no factual basis in the cited reporting for suggesting that consequence.
As of September 14, the Browns’ official front-office directory continues to list Hickman as assistant general manager and vice president of football operations. There is no role change reflected in the team’s current directory.
That makes the story best understood as an optics controversy rather than a documented personnel issue. Fan criticism is real and newsworthy when it becomes part of the public conversation around a team, but it should not be converted into claims about internal consequences without evidence.
The Freddie Kitchens comparison has a real history, but the details matter
The Browns have had a previous clothing-related controversy involving Myles Garrett, although the original FSN article described it too vaguely. In November 2019, then-head coach Freddie Kitchens was photographed wearing a “Pittsburgh started it” T-shirt shortly before a rematch with the Steelers.
That shirt referred to the Browns-Steelers brawl two weeks earlier, which ended with Garrett striking Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph with Rudolph’s helmet and receiving an indefinite suspension. The Browns said Kitchens’ daughters had given him the shirt as a joke and that he wore it while going to a movie. After Pittsburgh beat Cleveland 20-13, Steelers players criticized the decision to wear it.
The Hickman episode is not the same event and should not be presented as evidence of an organizational pattern. The useful parallel is narrower: in both cases, a piece of clothing took on extra meaning because of an already sensitive football story involving Garrett.
What matters now is how the post-Garrett Browns perform
The debate over the sweatshirt arrived just before Cleveland’s first regular-season test of its reworked roster. On September 13, the Browns lost 34-10 at Jacksonville. Cleveland fell behind 31-0 early in the third quarter, finished with 272 net yards and committed two turnovers.
That result moves the focus back toward the decisions the front office will ultimately be judged on: the value of the Garrett return, Verse’s development in Cleveland, the roster built around the team’s quarterbacks and whether the Browns can turn their younger core into a competitive team.
The Garrett trade will remain part of that evaluation for years because three future draft picks are still attached to the deal. For Los Angeles, Garrett became the centerpiece of an aggressive championship push; FSN has separately examined how Garrett fits into the Rams’ all-in defensive approach alongside Aaron Donald.
For Cleveland, the cleaner conclusion from the sweatshirt episode is simpler. Hickman wore a phrase that carried unintended football meaning in the wake of a major trade, fans reacted strongly, and the moment became viral. Anything beyond that—especially claims about her intent or job status—requires evidence that has not publicly emerged.
Correction and expansion, September 14, 2026: The original article treated Hickman’s intent and possible impact on her standing too speculatively and inaccurately described the 2019 Freddie Kitchens shirt episode. This revision separates documented reaction from inference, supplies the exact Garrett trade terms, confirms Hickman’s current Browns role and updates the story through Cleveland’s Week 1 result.