Why Matthew Stafford’s attendance during OTAs bodes well for the future QB of the Rams Matthew Stafford wants a new contract, even though he isn’t waiting around for one.
Matthew Stafford wants the Los Angeles Rams to renegotiate his deal in order to add more guaranteed money, even though he deserves it too. The quarterback is still taking part in voluntary organized practice (OTA) in spite of this while he waits for word from the negotiating table. Stafford is working out with teammates from the Rams, including Stetson Bennett. Stafford hasn’t shown any signs that he might hold out yet.
Thanks to the Detroit Lions, Jared Goff now has the second-highest annual pay of any NFL player. Stafford’s representatives should be ready to take the Rams hostage. Stafford is better than Goff and has won a Super Bowl, but the Rams don’t have a reliable backup quarterback. After the team’s 2022 Super Bowl victory, it makes sense that Stafford would want to be paid similarly to Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald.
Stafford makes $40 million a year, but quarterbacks of his level usually command at least $50 million in salary. The Rams owe him nothing for the 2024–21 season because he is guaranteed $31 million in pay. In the event that something goes wrong, they might even be compelled to cut him in 2025, at which point his salary of $27 million, plus a $5 million roster bonus, will be non-guaranteed. Stafford should be hoping the Rams tear up his old deal and replace it with something more like a $150 million, three-year contract with a $100 million guarantee. That seems more appropriate for a 36-year-old quarterback who has won a Super Bowl to ask of his team. That’s what happens when you don’t have Nick Foles.
However, Stafford is currently exercising and behaving normally, as we have become accustomed to seeing from him. We can generally expect two things from Stafford, as he has always been a professional and has tried to stay out of the media spotlight: the Rams will pay him shortly, and Stafford won’t say anything in public.