Steelers Preferred Matthew Stafford Over Aaron Rodgers

The Los Angeles Rams looked like they were heading toward a questionable 2025 season on the offensive side of the field as they allowed Matthew Stafford to seek a trade in the offseason.

After releasing Cooper Kupp, the Rams looked ready to part ways with Stafford who wanted more guaranteed money on his contract. While the negotiations never got contentious between the two sides, Los Angeles let Stafford speak to other teams to find out what his value was on the open market.

There were several teams that were interested in trading for the veteran quarterback, including the Pittsburgh Steelers who found themselves without a starter after both Russell Wilson and Justin Fields left in free agency. Wilson signed with the New York Giants while Fields landed with the New York Jets.

Earlier this week, the Steelers solved their quarterback problem by agreeing to terms with Aaron Rodgers. However, it appears that Rodgers was the third option for Pittsburgh behind trading for Stafford and re-signing Fields, via Adam Schefter of ESPN:

“Let’s also remember that this was the third option for the Pittsburgh Steelers. They were in on Matthew Stafford and couldn’t get done a trade. They tried to re-sign Justin Fields, he opted to go to the New York Jets where he will meet Aaron Rodgers on opening day. And after they couldn’t get a trade done for Stafford and couldn’t get Fields re-signed, they pivoted to Aaron Rodgers. So Aaron Rodgers right now was their third choice, their best choice right now, but their third choice.”

Unlike Rodgers, Stafford has still got a live arm and the capability of leading a team in the postseason. While Rodgers showed more signs of life down the stretch of the 2024 campaign, there’s no denying that he’s in the twilight of his career and not close to his prime self.

It never felt like Stafford was ever going to leave Los Angeles given his relationship with head coach Sean McVay and the quality of the roster, but it’s still reassuring to have him back in an official capacity and ready to lead the team in 2025.

Quentin Lake believes Matthew Stafford is easily a Hall of Famer

Matthew Stafford has been criminally underrated for years but finally proved his worth when he led the Rams to a Super Bowl win in 2021. Stafford has an interesting case for the Pro Football Hall of Fame but teammates like Quentin Lake believe he’ll easily make it.