According to an NFL Network rumor that surfaced during the 2024 NFL Draft, Matthew Stafford was dissatisfied with the terms of his current contract and was looking for more assurances and stability beyond this season. The Los Angeles Rams’ offseason news coverage was dominated by this plot, particularly in the weeks preceding training camp when many fans were speculating about whether Stafford would miss practice until a deal was reached.
Based on all the signs, Stafford’s contract was adjusted by the Rams right before the players’ report to camp deadline. The quarterback and the organization were lauded by the media for their ability to reach an agreement and presented it as a win-win scenario.
But in the end, if Stafford’s objectives were as reported by the media, he was not granted the security he had been hoping for past 2024. Rather, we were informed that Stafford’s grievances had nothing to do with the signal caller’s desire for increased compensation for the forthcoming season—quite the contrary really transpired.
“2024 pay into the $40M range, but (lessens) his guarantees in 2025 allowing both sides to decide whether they want to remain married at that point,” according to a recent report by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler about the updated agreement.
So how did the end outcome get so wildly inaccurate in the reports about the Rams and Stafford’s talks? Perhaps during the offseason, the quarterback’s goals shifted and he began to prioritize his life after 2024. We do know that Sean McVay was a major player in the contract negotiations; did he outmaneuver Stafford’s team to maintain his options for under center in Los Angeles the following season? In the end, the quarterback failed to achieve the objectives he had made known to the public and disseminated through the media when he left the negotiating table.
Jimmy Garoppolo is also mentioned in Fowler’s report as possible “insurance” in the event that Stafford decides to leave the team after the current campaign. Jimmy G, whether he was in Los Angeles or the Detroit Lions, is arguably the best backup Stafford has ever had. Given Stafford’s age and past history of injuries, is the organization making a calculated risk to spend more in the backup quarterback, or are they keeping an eye on the future?
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