There was a time a few months ago when it looked like Matthew Stafford might be the favorite to be the Raiders next quarterback.
At the time, there was a rift of some kind between Stafford and the Rams, and it was believed that Las Vegas was his preferred destination if the situation with the Rams wasn’t resolved.
According to Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter, the Raiders were offering Stafford the most money, but the veteran quarterback chose to remain in Los Angeles on what we know now was essentially a discounted deal.
How much of a discount did Stafford give the Rams?
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Stafford left around $20 million on the table by choosing to stay in Los Angeles – and presumably that amount doesn’t account for the money lost to California’s high tax rate.
“The Rams, in the end, gave him $80 million over the next two years, with $4 million already paid out in a March roster bonus that was, essentially, the last piece to the raise he got last year from the team before training camp,” Breer reported on Tuesday. “With the Raiders and Giants willing to exceed $100 million over the next two years, he walked away from around $20 million stay in California.”
Stafford hasn’t said why he chose to return to the Rams, but it clearly had nothing to do with money.
Carpenter shared a few of the details on Stafford’s mindset in March.
“I have known Matthew Stafford a long time. That’s no secret on this podcast. I can tell you that Matthew Stafford is a lot of things. He’s not disingenuous and he’s not a manipulator nor a liar and he took less money to stay there,” Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast.
“[Stafford] did not play the Rams. There was a rift in this relationship that was not a financial rift, but there was a rift in the relationship. I believe initially, without getting into detail, it was more of a rift from parts of the Rams to Matthew. The Raiders offered the most money. I can tell you, and this is not speculative, the Raiders offered him $100 million for two years,” Hondo continued.
“You always see players will say it’s not about the money, then they take the highest paid plays and people rip them. This was Matthew deciding to stay in California, even for less money, was what was best for his family if he wanted to continue to play football… He was genuinely interested in coming [to the Raiders] but when they sat down and talked, and the Rams were very forthright, and very humble, and he is by nature, I think it was just an opportunity where they were able to heal the relationship.”
x: @raidersbeat
Stafford is damaged goods, won’t last through 8 games. Time to put in jimmy g hahahahahaha