The Matthew Stafford era in Detroit could be coming to an end fairly soon. The longtime Lions quarterback and former No. 1 overall pick came to an agreement with the team that it was time to part ways, which kickstarted a trade search that has been ongoing throughout this week.
According to a report from NFL Network, a trade could come to fruition before the Super Bowl. Lions head coach Dan Campbell also made it sounds like something could be in the works fairly soon.
“It’s pretty hot and heavy right now,” coach Dan Campbell told Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “We’ve got quite a few offers and so it looks like we’ve got some trade partners, we’re just trying to work out the best scenario and see what’s best for us, ultimately.”
Meanwhile, Joseph Person of The Athletic reported that the Carolina Panthers are involved in the Stafford talks. Earlier in the week, new general manager Scott Fitterer said he wants his team to be “in on every deal,” so it makes sense that they would at least check in on the price point for Stafford. The way Carolina structured Teddy Bridgewater’s contract, it would not be that difficult to move on if the team wanted to go in a different direction.
Stafford himself reportedly considers the Rams a viable contender for his services, though the team would have to do some wizardry with the salary cap in order to pull it off. Moving on from incumbent starter Jared Goff could cost the Rams as much as $65 million in dead money, which would make things very difficult.
There are a lot of dominoes that will fall in the quarterback market over the next several weeks as teams gear up for the free agency period in March. Stafford is one of the biggest, and wherever he goes, it could set off a ripple effect elsewhere.
