Turf Show Times
Are the Rams a potential team to watch for Sam Darnold this offseason?
Earlier this week, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp announced that the team informed him that they would be looking to trade him this offseason. Of course, that now has many speculating or wondering whether or not the team will rip off the band-aid and move into the next era of Rams football by also trading quarterback Matthew Stafford.
It seems ridiculous on its face. The Rams were 14 yards away from the NFC Championship game. Had they beaten the Philadelphia Eagles, they would have been favored at home against the Washington Commanders. That’s not to say that they would have won, but they most certainly would have been favored to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. As long as Stafford is the quarterback of the Rams, they will have a chance to compete. MMQB’s Albert Breer went on the Dan Patrick Show on Tuesday and said,
“Nobody is talking about the Matthew Stafford thing, I don’t understand it. I don’t understand that nobody is talking about the idea that Stafford could be available and that if you’re another team you’re probably calling the Rams. That contract negotiation last year was tough...Now we’re into a part of his contract where there’s no guaranteed money left. He’s making less money than he was on the books to make this year because they borrowed from that to give him the money this past year. They had an agreement when they did the re-worked deal, we’re going to re-visit it at the end of the year. Well, now we’re at the point where they’re going to re-visit it. So, what if Matthew Stafford wants a market correction and says, ‘7-8 guys are making over $50-million, I want $50-million.’ There’s just a lot of stuff there where if I’m another team, I’m making that call. I think the coaches would love to have him back in Los Angeles. There’s just a lot there that they’ve got to work through over the next few weeks.”
Prior to the 2023 season, Rams general manager Les Snead mentioned building around three pillars or “weight-bearing walls.” Those pillars were Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, and Cooper Kupp. We’re now two years down the road from that and Donald has retired and the team just informed Kupp that they are going to trade him. Two-thirds of those weight-bearing walls from that era of Rams football are gone. It’s clear that the front office is starting to look ahead a little bit and replace those walls with newer pieces such as Puka Nacua and Jared Verse.
This is not to say that the Rams should trade Matthew Stafford. As long as Stafford is the Rams quarterback, the team will have a chance. That’s been proven much over the last two years as the quarterback has played at a top-10 and sometimes a top-5 level down the stretch as the Rams have recovered from starts of...
