If the Pittsburgh Steelers want to trade for Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, they better be prepared to open their wallets. Not only will the team need to dish out draft picks to make a deal happen, it will need to sign Stafford to a mega-contract that makes him among the highest-paid players in the game. While discussing ongoing trade buzz, NFL Network’s Peter Schrager dropped Stafford’s price tag.
“This is a money issue,” Schrager said on Good Morning Football Monday morning. “And Matthew Stafford wants to be paid what he thinks he’s worth. He wants to be paid more than $50 million. They’ve given the agent Jimmy Sexton…the freedom to seek out what might be some teams that would be of interest. And there are teams willing to pay him more than what the Rams are willing to pay him.”
While $50 million average yearly value is a large sum, it still wouldn’t put Stafford at the top among quarterbacks. The Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott broke the $60 million barrier while the Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow and Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love sit tied for second at $55 million per year. In total, nine quarterbacks are above the $50-million mark. Still a high-end quarterback, it’s not unreasonable for Stafford to want to become No. 10.
Of course, he’s also 37 years old and paying that kind of money to an aging quarterback who has played through injuries carries risk. Stafford also threw for just 20 touchdowns in 2024, his fewest in a full season since 2012. He spent parts of the season without top WRs Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, potentially explaining the production reduction, but teams will have to judge how much longer he can play before breaking down.
The Steelers are reportedly one of the teams interested in Stafford, though it’s not clear if they’re one of the teams Schrager mentioned willing to top the Rams’ offer. And Schrager made clear there’s no guarantee Stafford ends up elsewhere. Super Bowl contenders, the Rams have good reason to hunker down and hammer out a deal. The scenario could be similar to the San Francisco 49ers and WR Brandon Aiyuk last summer, wrestling over contract terms before finally agreeing to a new deal.
Adding Stafford would be the needle-moving decision that could snap the Steelers’ playoff drought. Still, adding him comes with no guarantees. Other than knowing it will be expensive.
