Over the last few weeks, there has been some uncertainty about the future of Los Angeles Rams veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford heading into the 2025 season. Would the Rams work out a deal to keep Stafford in LA or for another year? Or would Stafford decide to play elsewhere next season? Thankfully that's all been settled now.
If Stafford had decided to go elsewhere, the Rams’ starting quarterback options would not have been great. One potential option would have been Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers is coming off a disappointing 2024 season with the New York Jets.
With Stafford’s future up in the air at the time, Rodgers was being connected to the Rams as a preferred option, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. However, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported in his mailbag column this week that Rodgers was willing to take a pay cut to play with the Rams.
"Rumors were he was willing to take a deep discount to play for the Los Angeles Rams, maybe as little as $10 million—with proximity to his home in Malibu and the presence of Sean McVay and a contending team being powerful lures."
But as we saw, the Rams eventually worked out a deal with Stafford, keeping him with Sean McVay for one more year. That said, Rodgers playing with the Rams would’ve been an intriguing idea, given what McVay has done with other quarterbacks such as Baker Mayfield and Carson Wentz to a lesser extent.
However, despite Rodgers posting okay stats in New York this past season, it didn’t lead to many wins and it's possible he wouldn’t have made the Rams that much better.
Los Angeles might have been worse off as Stafford has a great grasp of McVay’s system and showed in the playoffs that he can still play at a high level. Rodgers at 41 years old might be on the downside of his career.
With the Rams committing to Stafford, Rodgers’ options for next season are greatly limited. The most recent buzz has the former Packers quarterback connected to the New York Giants, which would be a downgrade from his time with the Jets.