The Los Angeles Rams have fueled NFL rumors this offseason about a potential Matthew Stafford trade, granting his agent permission to speak with other teams and floating a potential acquisition cost in a potential deal. With Stafford’s future with the Rams increasingly uncertain, an emerging option seems to be on the table to replace him.
Rams coach Sean McVay and the rest of the organization would still prefer Stafford to be the team’s starting quarterback in 2025. However, contract talks between the two sides have gone nowhere and there have already been NFL rumors suggesting multiple teams are willing to offer more money than Los Angeles is comfortable paying.
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With the odds of a Stafford trade increasing, the next question becomes who replaces him as the Rams starting quarterback in 2025. Sam Darnold, Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins have all been floated as options under consideration, but a more familiar name is being considered heavily by the club.
On this Week’s Scoop City podcast before the NFL Combine, senior NFL writer Dianna Russini of The Athletic shared the Rams want to re-sign Jimmy Garoppolo this offseason and would be very comfortable if he takes over as the starter.
“The Rams are comfortable with Jimmy Garoppolo. So, Jimmy will be a free agent, I expect them to sign Jimmy. I can tell you the Rams feel good about Jimmy Garoppolo. They do. And I don’t think this is a leverage play. I don’t think this is them daring Matthew to walk…They’ve seen enough from him in the offseason, in practice, to feel comfortable.”
Dianna Russini of The Athletic on the Rams’ stance on Jimmy Garoppolo
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Garppolo, who turns 34 in November, would obviously just be a bridge quarterback in Los Angeles. Over the last two seasons, the veteran quarterback has a 3-4 record as a starter with a 9-10 TD-INT ratio, 81.4 QB rating, and a 65.2 percent completion rate.
It’s possible that McVay might have the confidence that he could accomplish with Garoppolo what Kyle Shanahan did. As the San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback from 2019-’22, Garoppolo recorded a 70-34 TD-INT ratio with a 100.2 QB rating, 68.2 percent completion rate and he averaged 8.3 yards per attempt with a 32-15 record.
Related: 4 Teams Expressed Interest in Matthew Stafford Trade With Los Angeles Rams
Trading Stafford and then re-signing Garoppolo would also significantly increase the likelihood of the Rams taking a quarterback early in the 2025 NFL Draft. Jaxson Dart has already been connected to the team and, depending on the trade, Los Angeles could be in a position to land Shedeur Sanders.
While all of those options would represent a steep downgrade in quarterback play compared to Stafford, it would allow the Rams to spend money on other positions. Furthermore, if the team lands a quarterback in Round 1, it would provide the franchise with the long-term answer they’ve wanted at the position.
