What is clear from Saturday night’s news, after asking around the NFL borders: Matthew Stafford wants to be a winner. He doesn’t care about statistics. He wants a chance to fight.
This is the essence of his commercial demand, which the Detroit Lions will honor by exploring options for the market defender. He spent 12 years in Detroit. It did not work. It is okay for both parties to recognize. And there has never been a cleaner time to do this, for three reasons.
Age: Stafford turns 33 next month (OK, so maybe 40 in the Lions) and should have a few more first seasons.
Contract: His agreement is reasonable by high quarterback standards. Stafford, who is eligible for the free agency in 2023, has $ 53 million in debt over the next two seasons. This is essentially the same commitment that Tampa Bay made to Tom Brady outside of last season. The $ 10 million bonus is due on the fifth day of the league year, which creates a kind of trading limit. And the cap for the next two years is $ 33 million and $ 26 million, the first of which could be offset by the fact that lions would absorb $ 10 million left over from signing the bonus.
Compensation: Stafford will be expensive, but the consensus around the league is that this will not be outrageous. While Deshaun Watson could justify a lot of choices in any transaction in Houston, Stafford is generally considered at the next level. And maybe, with a new scene, Stafford’s game hits a new stratosphere.
So what would it take to land Stafford from the Lions? And what teams should be in the mix? Here’s how it all comes together, based on calls made to executives across the league over the weekend.