Rams legend rips team amid Cooper Kupp, Matthew Stafford trade rumors

While the Los Angeles Rams seem ready to trade veteran wide receiver Cooper Kupp, it's unclear if quarterback Matthew Stafford will remain with the club through the offseason. 

During a recent chat with London sports radio station TalkSport, Rams franchise legend, Pro Football Hall of Famer and current NFL analyst Kurt Warner ripped the Rams for how they've handled the Kupp and Stafford situations.

"If you want to win as a team, then you don't get rid of guys like that," Warner said about Kupp and Stafford.

Earlier this week, The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue noted that the Rams' desire to trade Kupp, 31, "is the product of a combination of factors, including his expensive contract, and struggles to stay healthy and the emergence of a tight-knit core of young players who have built their identity inside a locker room that is detached from the previous Super Bowl era." Kupp has been limited to 33 regular-season games since September 2022. 

Meanwhile, Stafford will be 37 next season and has no guaranteed money left on his contract. 

"Matt, he's a top-five, top-seven quarterback in the league at this point, no matter where you want to stack him up," Warner continued during the interview. "It sounds like they want to make a trade for Cooper. Do they feel like they're not in that window? ...They got a great young defense. (Wide receiver) Puka Nacua is unbelievable. Matthew's playing at a tremendous level...If I'm the Rams and I believe my window to win is right now, there's no way I would even think about moving him."

Warner mentioned how Stafford guided the Rams to an impressive 27-9 wild-card playoff win over the Minnesota Vikings in January. Los Angeles then lost 28-22 to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in the following round of the postseason. 

According to Pro Football Reference, Stafford finished the 2024 regular season ranked 12th among qualified players with a 64.7 adjusted QBR and eighth with a 50.1% passing success rate. He tossed 20 touchdown passes and eight interceptions over 16 games. 

The good news for Warner and those who agree with him is that the Rams and Stafford reportedly could soon reach an agreement that would keep them married through at least the 2025 season. However, until such a deal is signed, rumors about his future will continue to hover over the Rams and the NFL leading up to the scouting combine.