Matthew Stafford Has Finally, Begrudgingly Requested A Trade

Matthew Stafford turns 33 next month. He’s suffered some brutal injuries the past few seasons. He suffered his entire career with the Detroit Lions. He had the help of one 1,000 yard rusher his entire career, Megatron retired early, Jim Caldwell might have died several times while standing on the sidelines and he was far and away the best coach Stafford's ever played for. The only surprising part of him asking for a trade is that he waited this long.

Stafford now hits the market with Deshaun Watson and Carson Wentz (maybe? I guess? Probably?) along with at least four first rounders in Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, Zach Wilson, and Trey Lance. If you’re a team looking for an upgrade, something new or a reset button, there is no time like the present. 

Unless something absolutely fucking wild happens, Jacksonville already took Lawrence off the board. Watson is going to cost a Brinks truck worth of picks. The Jets may well take Fields or Wilson, making Sam Darnold available. The Falcons make take a shot on  Lance or Fields, that may make Matt Ryan available - or they’ll hold him for a year and give their rookie time to sit and grow. A strategy that happens more in theory than it does in practice. The 49ers appear to be very loudly ready to move on from Jimmy G. I cannot imagine a world where the Patriots bring back Cam Newton. The Bears have Mitch, read that however you like. The Bengals probably need a one year rental while Burrow recovers. The Cowboys might pay Dak, they probably should, but Jerry Jones might decide he prefers paying running backs over quarterbacks and let him walk to pursue one of these names. It’s not likely, but nothing with Jerry would surprise anyone.

I say all that to say this: there’s a metric shit ton of movement on the horizon for the NFL. If the floor for Watson is three first rounders, what is Stafford’s price tag? Would you trade a first for the former #1 overall pick?