During an offseason of quarterbacks changing addresses – Deshaun Watson to Cleveland, Russell Wilson to Denver, Carson Wentz to Washington, Mitchell Trubisky to Pittsburgh – the Super Bowl champions are betting on stability.
The Rams have locked up Matthew Stafford with a four-year contract extension, the team announced Saturday, that reportedly is worth up to $160 million, with $135 million guaranteed. The contract could be the final one for the 34-year-old.
Stafford, who spent his first 12 seasons in Detroit, helped lead Los Angeles to game-winning drives in the divisional round (over the Bucs), NFC Championship (over the 49ers) and Super Bowl (over the Bengals) to bring the Rams a championship on their home field at SoFi Stadium in his first season with the organization.
Stafford had been heading into the final season of a five-year, $135 million deal he signed with the Lions in 2017. He gets an upgrade from $27 million per season to $40 million per year.
Matthew Stafford threw 41 touchdowns last season and led the Rams to a Super Bowl title. APThe top quarterbacks are cashing in, and Stafford now will be tied with Dallas’ Dak Prescott as the fifth-highest earner per season. Aaron Rodgers tops the list at just over $50 million, while Deshaun Watson will make $46 million, Patrick Mahomes $45 million and Josh Allen $43 million.
Stafford was an MVP candidate for much of the season, and while he might not be a top-three QB – he led the NFL with 17 interceptions last season – he has proven to be among the game’s elite.
In his first season with coach Sean McVay, Stafford threw for the third-most yards (4,886), the second-most touchdowns (41) and finished with the sixth-best quarterback rating (102.9) in the NFL.
