For the last several years, the Los Angeles Rams have been in “win now” mode. That’s exactly the type of move their trade for Matthew Stafford was, giving them a proven veteran at the most important position in sports.
The downside of the trade – in addition to the $24.7 in dead money for Jared Goff – is that Stafford only has two years left on his contract. As of now, he’s scheduled to become a free agent after the 2022 season.
But that’s only if the Rams don’t sign him to an extension beforehand, which seems like a real possibility. General manager Les Snead said on the 11 Personnel podcast that the Rams made this trade with the plan of keeping Stafford, 33, into his late 30s.
They’re looking five to eight years down the line with Stafford after seeing the success of older quarterbacks like Drew Brees and Tom Brady.
“I don’t think we did it thinking two years,” Snead said. “Based on his age, you can legitimately think five to seven, eight years if you look at what Drew has done. I don’t know if we’re going to get into Tom Brady, right? Too many things going. But with quarterbacks of his pedigree, a lot of those guys have played into their late 30s, for sure. So that was definitely the vision with Matt.”
Stafford has cap hits of $20 million and $23 million in the next two years, but only $10 million of that is guaranteed, the Rams can cut him after the 2021 season and take on no dead money. They obviously don’t plan to do that after trading two first-round picks and a third to land Stafford, but the point is that he isn’t secured long-term yet in Los Angeles.
The Rams could wait it out and see what Stafford does for two years before extending him. Or, they can give him a new deal and potentially lower his cap hit this year to free up some much-needed space.
Stafford said in March that he’s not worried about his contract and is focused on helping the Rams win, so he’s not pressing for a new deal. That could come in due time, and probably should if he plays at a high level in Los Angeles.
[listicle id=647098]