The Los Angeles Rams are already set to move on from one of their key offensive players during the 2025 NFL offseason. They told wide receiver Cooper Kupp they planned to trade him after eight years with the team.
Could Matthew Stafford follow him out the door? The 37-year-old’s future is uncertain as he and the Rams explore a potential new contract ahead of the 2025 season.
Stafford is coming off a strong season. He led the Rams to a 10-6 record and an NFL divisional-round appearance after completing 65.8% of his passes for 3,762 yards, 20 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. His 93.7 passer rating was his second-highest in four years with the Rams, and he didn’t show many signs of slowing down despite some nagging injuries.
Still, the Rams are assessing their organization’s future as Stafford enters the penultimate year of a four-year, $160 million extension. Los Angeles has a decision to make about his future worth and value to the team.
Here are the latest rumors about a potential Stafford trade and why the Rams might be willing to part with Stafford despite their desire to keep him.
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Matthew Stafford trade rumors
Rams give Stafford’s agent permission to speak with other teams about value
Date: Feb. 22
Source: NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Ian Rapoport
Pelissero and Rapoport are both reporting that the team has given Stafford’s agent permission to speak with other teams to determine his market value. This would let other teams inform Stafford’s agent how much they would pay the 37-year-old quarterback if he is acquired via trade. Both Pelissero and Rapoport note this is not a trade request as the Rams would ultimately prefer Stafford returns to the team in 2025.
Rams asking for a first-round pick in potential deals
Date: Feb. 19
Source: Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz
Schultz noted this in his weekly NFL confidential column based on what he’s hearing league-wide. Schultz said several teams have called the Rams about a potential trade for Stafford and ‘the belief is a first-round pick would probably be the asking price.’
All 32 teams have a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft at time of publishing. The Rams currently hold the No. 26 overall pick in the first round but do not have a second-round selection.
Rams could target Aaron Rodgers if they trade Matthew Stafford
Date: Feb. 18
Source: ESPN’s Adam Schefter
‘They’ve been trying to see if they can work out a new contract,’ Schefter explained. ‘If they can, Matthew Stafford will remain in Los Angeles and he’ll remain a Ram.’
Schefter also believes Stafford is interested in returning to the Rams. However, doing so will be contingent upon the two parties agreeing to a new contract, as Stafford is owed $35 million in 2025 – a low figure for a quarterback in the modern NFL – none of which is guaranteed.
If those negotiations stall, Schefter believes the Rams could explore trading Stafford for draft capital while chasing Aaron Rodgers as a free-agent stopgap.
‘If the Rams couldn’t get a deal done with Stafford, if they decide to trade him – a lot of ‘ifs’ involved – then Aaron Rodgers, in my mind, would be thrilled with the idea of going to Los Angeles. And the Rams could probably get him at lower cost than it would be for Matthew Stafford.’
Rams don’t want to make ‘significant financial commitment’ to veteran QB
Date: Feb. 17
Source: Jourdan Rodrigue, The Athletic
Rodrigue reports the Rams met with Stafford ahead of Super Bowl 59 but ‘not much progressed’ in their discussions. That is contributing to a ‘fluid’ situation for Stafford as he and the Rams try to properly assess his worth.
‘If there is a difference between Stafford and the Rams, it would likely be this: The Rams don’t want to make a significant financial commitment to a veteran quarterback whose long-term future or durability they can’t be certain about, and a youthful roster built through the draft is now their core identity,’ Rodrigue wrote.
Rodrigue noted the Rams expressed an interest in Aaron Rodgers before trading for Stafford in 2021 and could do so again with him set to be released by the New York Jets. The team could view backup quarterback and pending free agent Jimmy Garoppolo as a stopgap option at the position, per Rodrigue.
Giants wouldn’t give up No. 3 overall pick in potential Matthew Stafford trade
Date: Feb. 13
Source: ESPN’s Adam Schefter
Schefter was asked whether the Giants would and should consider trading for Stafford if he becomes available. The ESPN analyst opined he believed the team would pursue him as an upgrade, but not at the cost of the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NFL draft.
‘There is no way in hell that the Giants are giving up the third overall pick for Matthew Stafford,’ Schefter told Pat Leonard.
Rams, Stafford ‘committed to trying to work something out’
Date: Feb. 13
Source: ESPN’s Adam Schefter
Schefter appeared on ‘Talkin’ Ball with Pat Leonard’ shortly after Super Bowl 59 to discuss Stafford’s future with the Rams. The ESPN analyst didn’t guarantee Stafford would return to Los Angeles.
‘I think they’re committed to trying to work something out, but it doesn’t mean that they actually will work something out,’ Schefter said.
Schefter indicated that there was positivity on the Rams side that the two parties could work something out. He also acknowledged that an answer about the matter would likely come ahead of free agency.
‘I’d think we’d have an answer to that sooner rather than later because the Rams have to get clarity,’ Schefter said.
Kelly Stafford discusses husband’s future, Cooper Kupp trade on her podcast
Date: Feb. 6
Source: Kelly Stafford, ‘The Morning After’ podcast
The rumors surrounding Stafford began to swirl in earnest when Kelly Stafford spoke about her husband’s future with the Rams on a Feb. 6 episode of ‘The Morning After’ podcast.
‘I honestly wasn’t planning on discussing this, but hell, why not,’ she said. ‘My husband, like, wants to win. He’s not trying to put a team in a bad situation. If you’re catching my drift, you’re catching my drift.’
The podcast aired just a few days after Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp announced the team had informed him he would be traded during the 2025 NFL offseason. Stafford admitted she was ‘confused’ by the Rams’ strategy with that move.
‘I will say, the trading away of Cooper? … I’m confused because we were one play away from going to the NFC Championship,’ Stafford explained. ‘And if we go, I think we win.’
Stafford also clarified she wasn’t speaking directly for her husband. She was simply trying to protect him and achieve his ultimate goal of competing for another championship.
‘I have to be the dog in this situation,’ Stafford said. ‘I want the respect for him that he deserves. I love the city of L.A. With that being said, I love an adventure.’