Matthew Stafford has come to the forefront during this downtime in the NFL calendar. His contract extension talks with the Los Angeles Rams have not been going to plan, as the 37-year-old is reportedly seeking $50 million a year on the new deal. Because of that, trade speculation sparks have started flying all over the country.
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Teams in the doldrums, like the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns, have been linked with Stafford. The Pittsburgh Steelers, who would seem to make more sense as a win-now destination for a veteran QB, are also in the mix. However, the most significant reports about potential Stafford suitors have been coming out of Sin City.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady has been in contact with Stafford’s camp about a move to the Strip. Ian Rapoport also reported that Brady and Stafford “ran into” each other at a ski resort in Montana. The chance encounter did not include any in-depth conversations or Brady hosting or recruiting Stafford, but that’s how most of the reports are characterizing it. Sit-down or not, Mike Florio still believes the Rams should be “p*ssed” about Brady’s seemingly clever recruiting strategies.
“But now that Brady’s had a chance to work on him… You get a chance to make that pitch directly… That’s a different game, and that erodes the Rams ability to keep him. And if I’m the Rams, I’d be friggin p*ssed right now. Maximum p*ssed off. The question is, are they gonna stand up to it. Or are they gonna do the, ‘oh, if it was anyone else we’d be shouting and screaming, but it’s Tom Brady.'”
Brady has been front and center since joining the ownership team in Las Vegas. He was a major force in bringing Pete Carroll out of retirement and landing the Super Bowl champ as the Raiders’ head coach. According to Florio, if Brady was pitching Stafford on the Raiders—who are seemingly entering a rebuild, which one would think wouldn’t suit Stafford—that pitch would focus on Carroll and what he can do with the rest of the team.
“‘Hey, Matt, let me tell you, Pete Carroll, here’s what I know about Pete Carroll. Here’s what they did in Super Bowl 49. We should’ve lost that game. If they run the ball, they would’ve beat us. Look at what he does with his defense. He’s gonna do the same thing here… We’re gonna be fine. We’re ready to go.'”
Florio and others are treating the unplanned bump-into like Brady was trying to pull off a heist. However, the GOAT’s long-time agent, Don Yee, said that was simply “inaccurate”, per Tom Pelissero.
Reached for comment about an Internet rumor that Tom Brady hosted Matthew Stafford on a recruiting visit in Montana, Brady’s longtime agent Don Yee told me: “I know that reporters sometimes make mistakes in their haste, but this story’s inaccurate.”
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) February 26, 2025
After spending nearly a decade in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers front office—including three while Brady was their QB—John Spytek was hired as the new Raiders GM about a month ago. Earlier this week, in Spytek’s first official presser in his new role, he was asked about the Stafford rumors. He shrewdly steered clear of any tampering violations.
“I don’t really want to talk about other teams’ players and get in trouble in my first press conference here. But I would just say that if there’s an opportunity for any player that we think can add value to the Raiders, we’ll look into it.”
Many NFL rumors ultimately end up as bupkis. But there seems to be too much smoke surrounding Matthew Stafford’s departure from the Rams for there not to be some fire. The Rams’ brass has said they want to make a “keep or move” decision on their aging QB by the time of the NFL Scouting Combine. With the Combine scheduled for this weekend, we should get a resolution here sooner rather than later.
