Matthew Stafford will “take time to think” about his future

Sunday’s loss to the Rams could have been quarterback Matthew Stafford’s last game with the team.

Asked about his future after the playoff loss to the Eagles, Stafford looked at his watch, said the game just ended a short time ago and added that he “take the time to think about it”, via Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com.

While his time with the Rams is over, his time in the NFL is not.

“I feel like I’m playing really good ball,” Stafford said. When asked if he had any game left, he replied: “Of course, I want to. »

Stafford, 36, who was the first overall pick in the 2009 draft, has two years remaining on his contract. He has a fully guaranteed $4 million roster bonus due in March and a non-guaranteed salary of $23 million.

That’s less than half of the current market for the position, and Stafford clearly continues to perform at a higher level than that.

The Rams adjusted Stafford’s contract when training camp opened. It was the product of quiet tensions between player and team that persisted from the draft (when the Rams did not use a first-round pick on his successor) until the reporting deadline.

After the Rams limped to a 1-4 start, rumors swirled that Stafford would welcome a trade.

But then things changed dramatically for the Rams. They bounced back to win the NFC West and a Wild Card playoff game, before falling short in Philadelphia.

Although the Rams won a Super Bowl the first year after the trade that sent Stafford to Los Angeles for quarterback Jared Goff, two first-round picks and a third-round pick, the Rams quietly hoped after the season 2022 that the Jets would. come calling if their efforts to trade for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers have failed.

The Rams are in a tricky situation to say the least. They are undergoing a youth movement, with a promising defense and offensive stars like running back Kyren Williams and receiver Puka Nacua. And coach Sean McVay may be considering finding a younger player at the position.

When McVay was asked about Stafford’s future, McVay responded, “I’m not really interested in talking about anything as far as next year.” »

McVay was also tight-lipped last year about defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who surprisingly retired after 10 NFL seasons in March.

And so, once the annual coaching carousel stops spinning and the annual quarterback carousel is on, Stafford will potentially be an option for teams looking for new quarterbacks – and the Rams will potentially be one of the teams who will be looking for one.