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Former Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will be back in Detroit on Sunday, September 8, to open the 2024 NFL regular season with his Los Angeles Rams. The Rams have Stafford under contract through 2026, but one NFL writer said Stafford’s time as the Rams’ franchise quarterback may end sooner.
In a September 5 feature on the top 2025 NFL free agency landing spots for Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox made the case that Prescott could land with the Rams going into the 2025 NFL season.
“The Los Angeles Rams wouldn’t be an obvious suitor for Prescott right now because they still have Matthew Stafford under contract through 2026. However, Stafford’s contract situation will get very interesting after this year,” Knox wrote. “When Stafford agreed to restructure his deal in July, he essentially surrendered his 2025 guarantees to secure more guaranteed money upfront.”
Knox named the Rams as the No. 2 most likely spot for Prescott to land, behind only the Las Vegas Raiders.
Rams, Matthew Stafford Will ‘Reassess’ After 2024: Report
If Stafford isn’t back with Los Angeles in 2025, Knox asserted that the Rams would “immediately become a top landing spot for Prescott.”
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero suggested Stafford’s leaving after 2024 is a possibility, given the status of his contract.
“Effectively, it’s a one-year, $40 million deal. He gave up his other 2025 guarantees. Translation: Play this season and then all sides reassess,” Pelissero tweeted in July.
Knox also wrote about the uncertainty surrounding Stafford’s future with the team.
“If the 36-year-old Stafford stays healthy and plays well this season, he and general manager Les Snead may reassess the sensibility of a new long-term contract,” Knox wrote. “There’s a slim possibility, though, that Stafford’s assessment leads to a retirement decision.
“The Rams have a playoff-caliber roster, a quarterback-friendly coach in Sean McVay and enough financial flexibility to make a competitive contract offer,” he wrote.
But Stafford doesn’t appear to be ready to step down after this season, based on his August 12 comments on the “Pardon My Take” podcast.
“I appreciate this game,” Stafford said. “It’s given me a ton. I hope I got three or four [seasons] left in me. We’ll see. Every year’s a new year. But I do feel good.”
Matthew Stafford Ready to ‘Feel the Crowd’ at Ford Field Against the Detroit Lions
Stafford and McVay spoke to reporters before the Rams’ practice on Wednesday, September 4. They discussed coming back to Ford Field and the kind of crowd response Stafford is expecting to get from Lions fans. Stafford played at Ford Field on January 14 of this year for a playoff game, which the Lions won.
“I feel the crowd 100 percent,” Stafford said. “Motivating factor. Love it. I want to hear all of it. I want to smell it. I want it to feel like it’s football. That’s part of football, especially going to an away game. That stuff just motivates me.”
He added, “I’m going to obviously be one more game comfortable being an opponent in that field than I was, I guess, last year.”
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