Matthew Stafford - Pro Football Rumors

Multiple Offers Emerged In Broncos-Lions Matthew Stafford Talks

January 31st, 2021 at 8:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

Matthew Stafford listed the Rams atop his destination list, but Mike Klis of 9News notes the longtime Lions quarterback approved the Broncos as a landing spot. And the teams reached the offer stage in their talks.

While the Lions ended up accepting the Rams’ offer centered around two first-round picks, they had interest in both picks and players from the Broncos. The Lions were interested in sending Stafford to Denver because of the Broncos’ No. 9 overall pick, per Klis, who adds Detroit’s new regime was also interested in some of Denver’s young offensive talents.

It is not known which of the Broncos’ rookie-contract wide receivers appealed to the Lions, but Klis adds Drew Lock surfaced in these talks. Lock is coming off a wildly inconsistent season but is attached to a second-round deal that runs through 2022. The Lions instead took back Jared Goff, which allowed them to collect more in trade compensation from the Rams due to the former No. 1 overall pick’s onerous contract, but only will add a third-round pick to their 2021 draft arsenal.

Multiple proposals emerged in the Denver-Detroit talks, but Klis tweets none of the Broncos’ pitches were on the level of the Rams’ offer. Both the Broncos and Lions have new GMs, in George Paton and Brad Holmes, and the teams would have matched up at wide receiver — where the Broncos have three first- or second-round wideouts and the Lions have Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones on the cusp of free agency. It is unclear if Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton or K.J. Hamler surfaced in these trade talks, but Paton ultimately refused to part with the batch of young talents he is inheriting.

Stafford represented an obvious QB upgrade for the Broncos, who have experienced constant issues at the game’s premier spot since Peyton Manning‘s retirement. With Deshaun Watson not being connected to Denver yet, the prospect of the Broncos fielding a Lock-led QB room again is certainly in play. Prior to John Elway‘s exit, the Broncos were believed to be targeting a veteran to compete with Lock. Paton not being tied to Lock may also point to the Broncos giving stronger consideration to using the No. 9 overall pick on a quarterback.

Stafford Did Not Want Trade To Patriots?

January 31st, 2021 at 7:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the Lions employ several former Patriots, their centerpiece player is not believed to have wanted to travel the other way in this recently formed pipeline.

Matthew Stafford informed the Lions he did not want to be traded to the Patriots, according to Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston. Other than a trade to New England, Stafford expressed flexibility about his destination, Curran adds. The Rams agreed to acquire the soon-to-be 33-year-old passer for a major haul Saturday night.

The Patriots were interested in acquiring Stafford, Michael Giardi of NFL.com notes. More than six teams sent the Lions offers for Stafford; it is unclear if any Pats-Lions talks progressed to that point.

While the Patriots are undisputedly this century’s most successful franchise and still employ arguably the greatest coach in NFL history in Bill Belichick, the team is low on intriguing skill-position players. Stafford is believed to have preferred a deal to Los Angeles, which presents usual recruiting advantages for free agents and trade candidates. In addition to those advantages, the Rams have two higher-end wideouts signed long-term and multiple promising young running backs.

New England does hold plenty of cap space, being projected to possess nearly $60MM — and that is if the NFL slots the cap at the previously determined $175MM floor. That could create an opportunity for the Pats, in an offseason when few teams will have considerable space. But they will need to look elsewhere for their quarterback answer, with Stafford bound for L.A.

Lions Had 6+ Offers For Matthew Stafford

January 31st, 2021 at 10:55am CST by Zachary Links

The Lions agreed to trade Matthew Stafford to the Rams over the weekend, but not before mulling more than six offers in total, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com hears (Twitter links). A few of those packages included a 2021 first-rounder. Ultimately, the Lions opted for two future first-round picks, plus Jared Goff‘s outsized contract.

The Lions’ choice may reflect some level of confidence in Goff, who has struggled mightily since signing a four-year, $134MM extension with the Rams. Meanwhile, the Rams have secured a clear upgrade at the QB position for the here-and-now. Of course, the deal also shows exactly how hard it was for the Rams to unload Goff’s contract. The Rams mortgaged the future even further with this blockbuster, sacrificing their 2022 and 2023 first-rounders, plus a 2021 third-round pick. They’ll also be saddled with $22.2MM in dead money, while saving $12.4MM on his ’21 cap hit.

At one point, it was reported that 10-12 teams had expressed interest in Stafford. The 49ers – with a once-promising and highly-paid QB of their own — were among the rumored suitors, though it’s not clear if they were among the finalists. At the end of the day, the Rams outbid everyone else, landing the soon-to-be 33-year-old and escaping one of the league’s largest commitments all at once. The Lions, now led by ex-Rams exec Brad Holmes, will have ample ammunition as they remake their roster. As for the Rams — they’ll be without their original first-round pick until 2024, at the earliest.

Rams’ Matthew Stafford To Play On Current Contract

January 31st, 2021 at 9:58am CST by Zachary Links

The Rams pulled off a weekend blockbuster, acquiring Matthew Stafford from the Lions in exchange for Jared Goff and a sizable draft haul. And, after escaping Goff’s monster contract, the Rams and Stafford agreed to keep the veteran’s contract as-is (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com).

Stafford has two years and $43MM to go on his deal, and that’s how it’ll stay, even though the market has advanced since he last put pen to paper. For the soon-to-be 33-year-old, finding the best possible fit was more important than money, Rapoport hears.

That’s not to say that the Rams are viewing Stafford as a short-term option. Stafford’s coming off of a solid individual season that included nearly 4,100 passing yards with 26 touchdowns versus ten interceptions. Even at his advanced age, it’s clear that he has plenty left in the tank. Also, the Rams will have significantly less draft capital moving forward, even if they do have an inclination to upgrade under center. Rams GM Les Snead shipped away the team’s 2022 and 2023 first-round picks to dump Goff’s deal. In total, that makes seven consecutive first-round picks traded since Goff’s selection in 2016.

Stafford leaves Detroit with the Lions’ franchise records for passing yards and touchdowns. He also leaves town with a losing record in his 165 starts. Now, he has his best chance to win in ages, and he’ll gladly do it with a below-market contract.

Lions Trade Matthew Stafford To Rams For Jared Goff

January 31st, 2021 at 12:07am CST by Zachary Links

The Lions have agreed to trade Matthew Stafford to the Rams, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The deal will send the Lions’ longtime star to L.A. in exchange for fellow QB Jared Goff, plus a slew of draft picks. The exact terms of the trade could evolve in the coming weeks, but here’s what the trade currently looks like:

Rams receive:

QB Matthew Stafford

Lions receive:

QB Jared Goff
2021 third-round pick
2022 first-round pick
2023 first-round pick

The deal cannot become official until March 17th, though Stafford will surely be in contact with his new bosses much sooner. Stafford, soon to be 33, had spent all 12 of his NFL seasons in Detroit. When Stafford and the Lions agreed to go their separate ways, the Colts, Patriots, Broncos, and Washington TBDs were quickly connected to him. Ultimately, the Rams pounced on their chance to upgrade at the QB position and unload Goff’s contract in a historic swap of former No. 1 overall picks.

Goff earned Pro Bowl nods in Year 2 and Year 3 of his pro career, including a 2018 campaign where was under center for a Super Bowl appearance. Things have tailed off over the past two years, despite his high-priced extension. In 2019, he threw a career-high 16 interceptions. He followed that up with just 20 passing touchdowns in 2020 — the lowest total since his rookie year, when he started in just seven games.

Stafford, meanwhile, has fallen short of the 20-TD mark just once since 2011. Aside from his injury-filled 2019 campaign with just 19 passing touchdowns, he’s been an absolute rock for the Lions. The Rams are now set to add one of the game’s top quarterbacks to one of the league’s most talented rosters.

The Lions, meanwhile, will try their hand with Goff, who won’t turn 27 until October. Not long removed from his NFC title — or his No. 1 overall selection, for that matter — there’s reason to believe that Goff can get back on track. Even if he can’t, the Lions have tons of draft ammunition to work with in their rebuild.

Panthers In Mix For Matthew Stafford

January 30th, 2021 at 4:21pm CST by Sam Robinson

Having recently hired former Texans and Lions quarterbacks coach Sean Ryan to the same position, the Panthers have an interesting connection to both of this year’s hot-commodity trade pieces. And the team appears to be considering both passers.

In addition to their Deshaun Watson pursuit, the Panthers are in on the Matthew Stafford sweepstakes, Joe Person of The Athletic tweets. They join the Rams and many others, with a previous report indicating as many as 12 teams have discussed Stafford with the new Lions regime, in this group.

Stafford, who will turn 33 next month, would bring appeal due to his lower trade price. But some Panthers staffers believe the former No. 1 overall pick is in decline, Person adds (subscription required). Such stances would make a pursuit interesting, especially given the makeup of Carolina’s roster. While the Lions are expecting a first-round pick in return for Stafford, the Panthers hold the No. 7 overall selection. That would be quite a price to pay for a rebuilding team.

The Panthers would seem to match up better with Watson, who is 25 and signed through the 2025 season. But Stafford would be a clear upgrade over Teddy Bridgewater as well. Two years and $43MM remain on Stafford’s contract, though he could well seek an extension from the team that acquires him.

Ryan coached Stafford over the past two years but was in Houston for Watson’s first two seasons, throwing an interesting variable into the mix. Ryan was on the radar for the Panthers’ OC job last year, but Matt Rhule ended up hiring Joe Brady.

Rams Shopping QB Jared Goff?

January 30th, 2021 at 8:31am CST by Ben Levine

Raise your hand if you saw this one coming. Following news from last night that Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford would welcome a trade to the Rams, we’re now hearing that Los Angeles is shopping around their incumbent signal-caller. Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports that the Rams have held “exploratory talks with multiple teams” regarding a Jared Goff trade.

From a financial perspective, trading Goff is easier said than done. As Rodrigue explains, the Rams would be stuck with $22.2MM in dead money if they were to trade the former first-overall pick. However, a trade would be more palatable if it took place after June 1, as the Rams would be left with only $6.8MM in dead money (plus another $15.4MM in dead cap in 2022). As our own Sam Robinson pointed out last night, releasing Goff is also unrealistic. The guarantees in the quarterback’s four-year, $134MM deal go through 2022, and the organization doesn’t have an easy out on that contract until 2023. While Stafford has base salaries of just $9.5MM and $12.5MM over the next two years, Goff’s contract certainly complicates any potential trade.

After earning Pro Bowl nodes in his sophomore and junior seasons (including a 2018 campaign where he helped guide the Rams to a Super Bowl loss), Goff has seemingly plateaued over the past two years. He tossed a career-high 16 interceptions in 2019, and his 20 passing touchdowns in 2020 was the lowest total since his rookie year (when he started only seven games). For comparison’s sake, Stafford has tossed fewer than 20 touchdowns only once since 2011, and that came during a 2019 campaign where he compiled 19 passing touchdowns in only eight games.

As Sam noted last night, Rams head coach Sean McVay and GM Les Snead have recently made comments indicating Goff’s status is less than secure. Rodrigue also notes that there’s a connection between the Rams’ and Lions’ front offices; new Lions GM Brad Holmes previously served as the Rams’ director of college scouting. Now ,that’s not to say that any Goff trade would necessarily involve the Lions; considering Detroit’s apparent desire to restart, it doesn’t seem that Goff would be a fit in any hypothetical Stafford-to-Los Angeles deal. Still, the connection between the front offices is too obvious to ignore.

Rams In Play For Matthew Stafford?

January 29th, 2021 at 4:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Add a team to the Matthew Stafford sweepstakes. The Rams, who have done well to distance themselves from Jared Goff recently, are exploring a deal for the Lions passer.

The Rams are looking into possibilities of a Stafford move, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler, who adds Stafford views the team as a contender for a potential trade (Twitter link).

Any Rams dissatisfaction with Goff would be secondary to the current Los Angeles starter’s contract, however. The guarantees in Goff’s four-year, $134MM deal go through 2022. The team does not have an easy out on that contract until 2023, with a 2020 Goff restructure putting more money on future years of this deal. The Rams would be tagged with a staggering $65MM if they released Goff; trading the inconsistent passer would cost the team $22MM.

Sean McVay and GM Les Snead have made comments indicating Goff’s status is less than secure, pointing to the Rams exploring a replacement. As of now, they plan to hold a competition between Goff and backup John Wolford.

A deal to an NFC team would be less likely than the Lions sending Stafford to the AFC, where there are also teams that make sense for the 32-year-old quarterback. The Patriots, Colts and Broncos add up as AFC Stafford suitors, and a recent report indicated the Lions can expect to collect a first-round pick for the 12-year veteran. The Rams do not have a first-round pick this year, having sent it to the Jaguars for Jalen Ramsey. Nevertheless, it appears the Rams are one of the 10-12 teams that have contacted the Lions about Stafford.

There is a newly formed connection between the Rams and Lions, however. The Lions just hired former Rams college scouting director Brad Holmes as their GM, with ex-Rams pro scouting director Ray Agnew now in place as Lions assistant GM. Still, the Rams’ top pick in this year’s draft comes at No. 57. The team has not made a first-round pick since trading up for Goff in 2016.

Latest On Matthew Stafford

January 27th, 2021 at 2:43pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

This offseason projects as an unprecedented one in terms of quarterback movement. One high profile veteran signal-caller who will definitely be on the move is Matthew Stafford, who is set to be traded after 12 years with the Lions.

We heard yesterday that Detroit was preparing to start trade talks, and it sounds like things are heating up. There’s “significant interest” in Stafford, and “about a third of the league” has already called the Lions to inquire, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter video link). That would suggest that anywhere from 10-12 teams have already reached out to gauge the asking price.

To that end, Rapoport says the team “should be able to get at least a first-rounder” in any trade. There have been suggestions that the Lions want to wrap things up quickly, and it sure sounds like Stafford could have a new home before too long. The obvious contenders like the Colts, Broncos, Washington etc. are quite likely among the teams who have placed calls, but there are at least a handful of wild card teams at play here as well.

We’ve already heard that the 49ers could be interested in making a deal. Meanwhile, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com says he would be surprised if the Patriots don’t at least sniff around the situation. As he notes though, the return of Matt Patricia to New England’s coaching staff could complicate things if he and Stafford don’t have the best relationship (which isn’t necessarily the case).

Interestingly, Reiss also writes that if the 49ers pull off a trade for Stafford it could have a ripple effect where Bill Belichick is able to re-acquire Jimmy Garoppolo from San Francisco. That would certainly be a crazy arc. Whatever happens, we should have a lot more on the Stafford front soon.

Lions Begin Matthew Stafford Trade Talks

January 26th, 2021 at 3:56pm CST by Zachary Links

Late last week, the Lions and Matthew Stafford agreed to go their separate ways this offseason. Already, teams have started reaching out to the Lions to talk trade, sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter).

Stafford, 32, has spent all 12 of his NFL seasons in Detroit. The Colts, Patriots, Broncos, and Washington TBDs would all be logical landing spots for him, but it’s not clear which of those clubs have contacted the Lions so far.

Stafford popped up in trade rumors last year, but GM Bob Quinn denied that he was on the block. Now, there’s a new regime in Detroit, led by head coach Dan Campbell and GM Brad Holmes. After hiring former Chargers coach Anthony Lynn as their OC, they’re prepared to overhaul the offense.

The veteran managed to play in all 16 games this year, no small feat given his 2019 back injury. Still plenty productive, he’s also mighty affordable. Stafford’s contract runs through 2022 with base salaries of just $9.5MM and $12.5MM. Owed a $10MM roster bonus on the fifth day of the league year, the Lions are looking to trade Stafford before the March due date.

In 2020, Stafford posted a 26-10 TD-INT ratio while ranking 15th in QBR. It was a solid bounce-back from his ’19 slate, which ended with a total of eight starts.

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