Former Detroit Lions and current Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford would be a hot commodity if he becomes the center of a trade deal during the offseason. It’s not easy to find a veteran quarterback who has won a Super Bowl and is still playing as well as Stafford has exhibited over the past season.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that some NFL insiders think Stafford could leave the Rams for one last run in the NFL with a new team.
Analyst’s ‘First Call’ Would Be to Former Lions Quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Rams
Former NFL quarterback and current ESPN analyst and expert Dan Orlovsky has a few thoughts about Stafford and where he might go during the offseason.
Speaking on NFL Live, Orlovsky talked about Stafford being the “first” guy he would call when trying to fill the quarterback vacancy with the Las Vegas Raiders.
He also named the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers as ideal landing spots for Stafford.
“I think the first call I would make would be to Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams to figure out what Stafford’s plans are,” Orlovsky said on the Tuesday, January 28 edition of the show. “Is he going to play? Is he going to retire? Do they want him back?”
That’s when he added the Giants and Steelers into the mix with the Raiders, stating, “Honestly, if I were the Giants, if I were the Steelers, if I were a lot of teams that would be my number one call. Try to see kind of what the plan is for Matthew Stafford.”
The Steelers, of course, already have Russell Wilson and Justin Fields in the fold, so that seems less likely. Both the Giants and Raiders, however, are in need of a solid franchise quarterback, and Stafford could add the kind of veteran talent to their roster.
For the 2024-25 season, the former Detroit Lions quarterback tossed for 3,762 yards, 20 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Under his guidance, the Rams won the NFC West division title and Wild Card matchup over the Minnesota Vikings. They fell to the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round of the playoffs, though.
More Retirement Talk
Stafford was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 2009 as the No. 1 overall pick out of Georgia. He was in Detroit for 12 years before being the center of a major trade package with the Los Angeles Rams that sent him to L.A. and brought Jared Goff to Detroit. Stafford won Super Bowl LVI against the Bengals during his inaugural season with the Rams.
Stafford turns 37 in February, and while that’s certainly retirement age for a quarterback in the NFL, Stafford hasn’t indicated that he’s ready to step off the field. Following the Rams’ loss to the Eagles, Stafford told reporters that he would “take some time to think about” the idea of retirement. He also told reporters, “I feel like I was playing some pretty good ball,” indicating that maybe he’s not quite ready to step down.
When asked by a reporter if he has football left in him, he replied, “Sure feels like it.”
Stafford signed an adjusted contract with the Rams last summer, and his cap hit is $49.66 million.
