Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford has been suspended by the team.
For Jared Goff, why did the Detroit Lions deal Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams?
How the Detroit Lions swiftly developed a contender by trading Matthew Stafford to the Rams
Sunday’s NFL postseason wild-card round matchup between the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams will take place at Ford Field in Detroit, three seasons after both teams traded quarterbacks in a move that changed the course of their respective careers.
Ever since their historic trade on January 30, 2021, which sent Jared Goff and three draft picks to Detroit, which helped spark its rebuild and produce its first division title in thirty years, and Matthew Stafford to Los Angeles, which propelled it to a Super Bowl title the following year, the two teams have been inextricably linked.
The Lions embarked on a new journey at the end of the 2020 season, having finished with a 5-11 record. During the season, general manager Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia were fired.
Brad Holmes from the Rams was brought in to manage the team as general manager, and Dan Campbell from the New Orleans Saints was recruited in to take over as coach by team owner Sheila Hamp.
During Holmes’ first few weeks on the job, Stafford went to ownership and demanded a trade, which was promptly approved. Stafford sensed another teardown.
Here’s what happened and why it happened:
Why did the Lions swap Jared Goff for Matthew Stafford?
Prior to the Rams deal, the Staffords had purchased a home in Newport Coast, California, and Kelly, his wife, had been open about her desired destination ever since his name first appeared in trade rumors the previous winter.
If Detroit is finished with us, then… In an Instagram post, she stated, “I could stay in Cali,” above a headline indicating that Stafford’s most likely trade destination was the Los Angeles Chargers.
The morning after the deal broke, Birkett wrote in the Free Press, “The Lions did right by Stafford after doing wrong by Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson.”
Despite winning the Super Bowl the year before, the Rams and head coach Sean McVay had started to grow distant from quarterback Jared Goff.
The Rams decided to cut Goff after he inked a four-year, $134 million contract extension in 2019.They desired a QB upgrade. In Stafford, they located one.
Holmes, who spent five years working with Goff in Los Angeles, was the former director of college scouting for the Rams.
During Goff’s tenure at California, Holmes personally scouted him. Holmes also pushed for the Rams to make a deal that would have moved them up 14 spots to pick Goff in the 2016 selection.
Holmes placed a large second wager on Goff five years later, and this time it paid off.
Matthew Stafford’s trade earnings
It was an easy trade, with each team giving up their previous first-round pick at quarterback.
Goff, a third-round pick in 2021, and first-round selections in 2022 and 2023 were acquired by the Lions.
Stafford was taken by the Rams.
But Holmes continued to add young players to the offense and defense with the additional selection capital, so the move ultimately had broader effects on the Lions squad.
2021 draft
The first draft selection to be transferred from Los Angeles was Detroit’s selection of Syracuse defensive back Ifeatu Melifonwu in the third round of the 2021 draft, at pick No. 101 overall. In his first season, he played cornerback; however, in 2022, he switched to safety.
Melifonwu spent his first two seasons mostly as a special teams player and reserve in the secondary, but he emerged as a vital member of the defense at the end of the year. During the last quarter of the season, he played almost every snap at safety while the Lions dealt with injuries.
He recorded three sacks and two interceptions during that time, and after a two-sack, one-interception performance against the Vikings to help secure the division title, he was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Week 18 saw Melifonwu return to splitting snaps in a three-man rotation with the return of C.J. Gardner-Johnson from a torn pectoral.
The only player the Lions chose not to select from the Rams’ selection slot was Melifonwu. In order to arrange deals to go up in the 2022 draft and down in the 2023 selection, Holmes made the decision to use the two first-round picks from Los Angeles. Both transactions resulted in two players being selected by the Lions.
2022 draft
After making a trade with the Vikings, Holmes utilized the Rams’ first-round pick (No. 32 overall) as well as his own selections (Nos. 34 and 66) to advance and choose wide receiver Jameson Williams out of Alabama at No. 12 overall. Josh Paschal, a defensive end from Kentucky, was selected by Detroit with the No. 46 pick in the second round.
Due to injuries and a ban, Williams needed some time to establish himself in this situation. After missing the first eleven games of his rookie season due to a ruptured ACL sustained in his last college game, he returned and recorded one reception for forty-one yards.
After missing portions of training camp due to hamstring issues, he was suspended for the first four games of his second season for violating the NFL’s gambling policy. This time, he began the season on the bench as well.
But following his suspension, Williams participated in 12 straight games, becoming more and more integrated into the offensive system as he caught 24 passes for 354 yards and two touchdowns.
However, an ankle ailment kept him out of the regular season finale.As the outside speed element for the Lions against the Rams, he should be ready to play.
In his two years with the Lions, Paschal has also had to cope with injuries, playing in 22 of a possible 34 games. Throughout his career, he has racked up 41 total tackles, seven for loss, and three sacks.
2023 draft
After winning the Super Bowl, the Rams had a temporary collapse, going 5-12 in the regular season and giving Detroit the No. 6 overall pick. In the first round, Holmes used the pick to trade down, giving the Arizona Cardinals the sixth pick and a third-round pick in return for Nos. 12, 34, and 168. The Cardinals chose offensive tackle Paris Johnson.
Both the 12th and 34th picks were used on offensive linemen Sam LaPorta and Jimmy Gibbs, who both immediately established themselves as important members of the offense and have scored a combined 20 touchdowns this season.
At the conclusion of the third round, Holmes moved up to choose defensive tackle Brodric Martin at No. 96 overall by bundling the 168th pick with the 122nd and 139th picks.
LaPorta had an incredible debut season as a tight end, ranking among the top five in yards (889), touchdowns (10), and receptions (89) in NFL history for a tight end in his first year of play. But after sustaining a knee injury in Week 18, he might not be able to play in the playoff game, giving him a “outside shot.”
Alongside David Montgomery, a free agent signed in the offseason, Gibbs has formed an explosive running back duo. After missing two games due to injury, Gibbs had a quiet first four games.
However, he rebounded well to end with the second-most yards of any rookie ball carrier this season—behind Atlanta’s Bijan Robinson by 31 yards on 32 fewer carries—and the most touchdowns.
In addition to 52 receptions for 316 yards receiving and a touchdown, Gibbs had 182 carries for 945 yards, averaging 5.2 yards per carry, and 10 touchdowns.
Martin was buried behind others on the depth chart at defensive tackle, thus he didn’t play much.
Final outcome
Stafford assisted the Lions in acquiring Martin, Melifonwu, Paschal, Williams, Gibbs, LaPorta, and Goff. It’s not awful at all, Brad. With a ring to prove it, the Rams are also extremely happy.
In May, Birkett went into additional detail about all the components of the agreement, which ultimately involved 30 players and eight teams.
