Matthew Stafford-Jared Goff trade still a win-win for Rams and Lions
Jared Goff doesn’t think about it much anymore.
“It seems like a long time ago,” he told reporters in Detroit this week.
Matthew Stafford hinted at the same thing during his weekly availability with Los Angeles reporters.
It’s been nearly five years since the Rams sent Goff, two first-round picks and a third-round pick to the Detroit Lions in a blockbuster trade for Stafford. But even if the two star quarterbacks – and former No. 1 draft picks – would like to politely leave things as they are, they will forever be linked in football’s greater consciousness.
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Gary Klein explains what to watch for when the Rams take on the Detroit Lions at SoFi Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
“It wasn’t an easy transition for anyone,” Stafford said. “You move across the country. Your families move across the country, all that kind of stuff. You join a new team and do all that.
“So I have a lot of respect for him. And I hope he feels the same way about me.”
Sunday at SoFi Stadium, Stafford and Goff will face off for the fourth time. The Rams beat the Lions at SoFi Stadium in 2021, but the Lions beat the Rams in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs two seasons later at Ford Field, then beat them again in the same stadium in the 2024 season opener.
Who got the better end of the deal?
Stafford, 37, led the Rams to victory in Super Bowl LVI in his first season and is poised to help them clinch a playoff berth for the fourth time in five seasons with a performance that made him one of the favorites to win his first most valuable player award.
Goff, 31, led the Lions to two playoff appearances, including the 2023 NFC Championship Game, and was twice elected to the Pro Bowl.
So both prospered. And this season, they are statistically close.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 288 of 432 passes for 3,354 yards and a league-best 35 touchdowns with four interceptions.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Stafford completed 288 of 432 passes for 3,354 yards and a league-best 35 touchdowns with four interceptions. Goff completed 289 of 412 passes for 3,334 yards and 26 touchdowns with five interceptions.
The Rams (10-3) hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC and can clinch a playoff spot with a win on Sunday. The Lions (8-5) are battling for a playoff spot in the NFC North, chasing the No. 2 seed Green Bay Packers (9-3-1) and the No. 7 Chicago Bears (9-4).
“Jared played really well,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “I was really happy to see what he did and how he really put this team on his back and did such a good job of being able to build.”
Goff, of course, is in Detroit because McVay became frustrated with him toward the end of the 2020 season — which ended with a divisional round loss to the Packers — and Stafford became available after 12 seasons with the Lions.
Nearly half a decade has passed. But when asked about Goff, McVay takes every opportunity to remorsefully reference the clumsy and impersonal way he handled the Los Angeles quarterback’s exit.
“I was very open and very clear about [how] I had a lot going on growing up when this thing went down,” McVay said. “There were a lot of good memories and a lot of really good ball that he played here that I will always cherish. I’m really happy for him. He is married and now has a beautiful little daughter. It’s great to see.
“I think it reminds me of those things, and then it also reminds you of when you need to be able to grow up and handle things better. I would never run from that.”
Goff said he no longer felt an emotional charge when playing against the Rams, citing the playoff game and last season’s opener.
“So now it’s even further away,” he said.
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff completed 289 of 412 passes for 3,334 yards and 26 touchdowns with five interceptions.
(Ryan Sun/Associated Press)
Stafford apparently feels the same way about the Lions.
“When I turn on the tape, I don’t think about all the guys I played with,” he said, “because almost none of them are still playing on the team.”
Stafford said he follows many NFL quarterbacks, including Goff.
“They’ve had a lot of success since he’s been there,” Stafford said. “He’s been a big part of this. I think he does as good a job as anyone of getting the ball to his playmakers and letting them work.”
Goff also monitored Stafford.
“He does a good job,” Goff said. “And we get crossover tapes here and there, and he’s one of those guys you love to watch on tape.”
After the game, as is usual in the NFL, the quarterbacks will meet up. The exchanges between Stafford and Goff included “a ton of mutual respect,” Stafford said.
“The last two times we played him, it was great battles until the end,” Stafford said. “He made some plays to help him win the game and shoot, I take my hat off to him.”
