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Wade Payne / Associated Press
In the immortal words of the great newsman Ron Burgundy, things increased rapidly in the NFL quarterback market.
The said market was already in a nutrition rush by the news that Deshaun Watson of the Houston Texans was looking for a new helmet. But on Saturday afternoon, things were thrown for another massive loop – by an announcement that teams may not have to send out multiple first-timers to find a proven veteran.
This one comes with a 5,000 meter season and all.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, with another rebuild in Detroit, former Lions starter Matthew Stafford requested a trade sale – and the team decided to comply with his request.
With a 32-year-old Pro Bowl full-back with 282 careers available, every team in the league that is not sold on its starter will at least kick the tires at Stafford. Speculation about his next home is the most popular topic in the coming days and weeks.
But these handful of clubs have the best combination of need and assets to promote this trailer.
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Brynn Anderson / Associated Press
Admittedly, this first one is unlikely for some reason.
The Lions may have agreed in theory to swap Stafford, but all things being equal, the team will want to handle him as far as possible. That certainly means outside the NFC South (sorry, Chicago) —and hopefully completely outside the NFC.
The Saints will also be let down in 2021 with a capital decline. Per Over the Cap, no team in the NFL is in a worse position in terms of salary cap than New Orleans, which puts more than $ 100 million in the red.
There’s also the issue of Drew Brees’ status, although the tea leaves before his division loss against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers allegedly indicate retirement.
But hey, why sweat details?
The Saints also won just 12 games and won the division in 2020. Head coach Sean Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis both know as well as everyone that if the Super Bowl window in New Orleans did not close, it would not be open much longer.
It may be worth doing the road rebuilding a year if that means you have to add a significant upgrade over Taysom Hill to quarter.
The good news for Stafford would be his best shot at the post-season in years.
The bad news would be the whole “replacement” of Brees.
But again … details.
Suggested offer: Round 1 choice (No. 28 overall), Conditional Round 3/4 choice.
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Charles Krupa / Associated Press
It’s the trade that defines, for better or worse, Joe Douglas’ tenure as general manager of the New York Jets.
Before Gang Green fans start shouting, no one is proposing that New York make its first choice to get Stafford in 2021 – and that’s what makes it a relatively unlikely deal.
But the Jets have something to offer that other suitors would not want: a former top-five pick who still stands on his rookie contract at quarterback Sam Darnold.
Yes, that assumes new head coach Robert Saleh and the Jets are ready to move on from Darnold. But if that’s the case, a trade for Stafford lets the new regime get its proverbial cake and eat it too.
Not only will the Jets get their most proven quarterback in recent memory (who will only be 33 years old when the 2021 season begins, despite a dozen years under his belt in the NFL), but New York will still be the second have overall choice in this year’s draft to use in another position – or trade to get back the compensation he lost on acquiring the veteran signal caller.
If Douglas and Saleh are sold, the No. 2 and the Jets’ first pick in 2022 will put them on the list.
The Lions, on the other hand, get the second choice on Day 2 this year, next year a Day 2 choice and a young passer-by who can benefit greatly from the change of scenery.
Suggested offer: Round 2 pick (No. 34 overall), 2022 Round 3 pick, Quarterback Sam Darnold
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Justin Edmonds / Associated Press
We’re about to find out exactly how the new Denver Broncos general manager George Paton feels about Drew Lock.
Paton is in a rough spot – with the ninth overall pick, he probably wants (at best) to be the third team to line up a quarter in Round 1 this year. And after Lock’s mostly gruesome second season, it’s clear he’s not the long-term answer in Denver.
There is also the issue of a fanbase becoming increasingly impatient. Denver has not reached the playoffs since winning the Super Bowl 50 – a bit of uselessness that the team has not been able to surpass since joining the NFL in 1970 and missing the playoffs for seven seasons.
If the rebuilding does not come to an end in a short time, head coach Paton and Vic Fangio will not last long. The latter is already on thin ice.
The Broncos are not a bad football team. There is a skill position talent at running, a wide receiver and a tight end. The offensive line is at least decent. Any Fangio defense will be at least average – and Denver has the staff (if healthy) to be significantly more than that.
This comes down to the belief (or lack thereof) that Stafford the Broncos can achieve the three to four victories in 2021 that they will get in the playoffs.
If Paton’s answer to the question is ‘yes,’ it would be from Detroit as well. If the Broncos offer a top-10 pick, it goes down.
Suggested offer: Round 1 selection (No. 9 overall)
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Derik Hamilton / Associated Press
This is one of those transactions that makes almost too much sense.
The Washington soccer team was the surprising champion of the NFC East in 2020, despite winning just seven games. Washington has perhaps the league’s best defensive line. Young game creators running (Antonio Gibson, 22), wide receiver (Terry McLaurin, 25) and tight end (Logan Thomas, 29).
There is only one conspicuous gap on the grid: quarter.
Dwayne Haskins Jr. was released during the season. Alex Smith is likely to be the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year, but he’s not the player he once was and is considering retiring. Taylor Heinicke was a great story for one playoff game, but as long-term solutions go, ‘gamble’ doesn’t start to cover it. And thanks to the division title, Washington barely makes the top 20, despite losing more games than it has won.
Stafford has been fertile in Detroit through a dozen (mostly) futile years. He was (mostly) durable. By all indications, he’s a hard “pro pro” through and through.
Stafford would improve the Washington offense immeasurably – more than any player who could pick the franchise at number 19. The fans will love it. Head coach Ron Rivera would very much like that. This will immediately raise the WFT to the frontrunner status in the division in 2021.
And as it happens, the new general manager in Washington, Martin Mayhew, is the man who drafted Stafford first in 2009 overall.
It almost looks like fate.
Almost.
Suggested offer: Round 1 selection (number 19 overall), 2022 Round 2 selection
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Adrian Kraus / Associated Press
This is where that “almost” part of the last entry begins.
There’s one general manager above all others who probably stumbled on the mat as they hurriedly brought a call to the Lions as soon as the Stafford news went viral.
His name is Chris Ballard. And he works in Indianapolis.
The Colts have just won 11 games and reached the post-season for the second time in three years. But with Philip Rivers retiring and Jacoby Brissett on the verge of hitting free agency, Jacob Eason is the only quarterback still in Indy.
In Indianapolis, Stafford would play behind one of the league’s better O-lines, with a rising young rugby team in Jonathan Taylor and a capable stable of passers-by. He will most likely definitely be mobile and then some.
In return, a win-win mode Colts team does not have to convince itself that Ryan Fitzpatrick may not be a terrible idea in free agency. Or reach a quarter with the 21st choice.
The addition of a quarterback of Stafford’s caliber (who is also significantly younger than Rivers, 39) is the kind of move that could completely change the track of the franchise – in a good way.
Do it, Mr. Ballard.
Suggested offer: Round 1 selection (No. 21 overall), Conditional Round 2/3 selection, Round 6 selection