Getty Image / Ric Tapia
The Los Angeles Rams have shifted gears in a major way this offseason.
After years of trading away draft picks in an effort to load up on veteran talent and contend for a ring, the Rams appear to have started thinking about their future.
The team has already traded away Jalen Ramsey for a surprisingly small return and released Bobby Wagner and released Leonard Floyd. They’ve also given Allen Robinson permission to seek a trade.
However, it turns out those could have been far from the biggest moves for the Rams this offseason.
According to a report from Pro Football Talk, the Rams actually would have welcomed a trade for starting quarterback Matthew Stafford.
Matthew Stafford remains on the Rams' roster. Which means that, under his contract from last year, another $57 million has become fully guaranteed. https://t.co/7bIpGeKgkA
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) March 17, 2023
And, yes, the Rams would have (we’re told) welcomed the opportunity to trade Stafford. If Aaron Rodgers hadn’t decided to join the Jets, Stafford could have become the Plan B, if he would have been willing to go to New York.
While it’s something they would have welcomed earlier in the offseason, it is no longer an option for the team.
Earlier in the week, the Rams reached the deadline for Stafford’s salary for the 2023 season to become fully guaranteed and they now need to exercise a $26 million bonus for Stafford. That leaves them on the hook for a guaranteed $57 million this season.
Trading Stafford away would have been a sign that the Rams were fully committing to rebuilding their roster after an awful 2022 season.
Instead, they now find themselves in limbo as they have some veteran talent that should lead them to wins next season, but aren’t anywhere near as good as the Super Bowl winner we saw last year.
Wot 4 years left on Stafford’s contract, the Los Angeles Rams could be looking for a trade for a while as they attempt to rebuild their roster.