Matthew Stafford won’t budge from his cushy contract.
The Rams reportedly tried to renegotiate the quarterback’s four-year, $160 million deal due to a salary cap squeeze, but Stafford declined.
“I was told by a source I trust that they wanted to redo his contract. He wasn’t interested. It limits what they can do and they were frustrated with him,” Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd said on Monday’s episode of “The Herd.”
“And I could also see them next year taking a quarterback [in the draft] because the way to catch up in this league with personnel is rookie quarterback, go buy four good players.”
Stafford led the Rams to Super Bowl glory in February 2022 after a dominant regular season.
The 35-year-old quarterback has slumped since, but Los Angeles is stuck paying the top-talent price.
Stafford’s contract, inked with the Rams last offseason, included $63 million at signing and an additional $57 million that became fully guaranteed in March 2023.
NFL reporter Albert Breer, a guest on Cowherd’s show, said while the Rams weren’t fully shopping Stafford, they have been trying to retool for the future.
“If you’re talking about shopping a guy, like, ‘We’re looking to offload him,’ that’s not what they were looking to do,” Breer said. “But they did earmark this as a reset year.”
Former NFL executive Michael Lombardi was on “The Pat McAfee Show” earlier this month and said the Rams tried to deal away Stafford before the new league year in early September.
“When his option bonus was getting ready to kick in, they attempted, with a lot of effort, to trade him — any team could have had him,” Lombardi said.
However, Rams general manager Les Snead ultimately picked up Stafford’s 2023 option bonus and 2024 salary.
While Stafford shined in his first year in Los Angeles, posting a 12-5 record and throwing for 4,886 yards, 41 touchdowns and 17 interceptions, his production has fallen off.
Stafford was rattled with injuries during the 2022-23 season and eventually sidelined after nine games with a spinal contusion.
While also battling through a recurring elbow issue, Stafford threw an average of 231.9 yards per game, his lowest since 2010, and the team was 3-6 in games he started.
Stafford is reportedly entering 2023-24 at full health –– and with a full wallet.