Former Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford recently re-signed with the Los Angeles Rams but revealed some unexpected retirement news on a podcast.
As the offseason began, there were speculations about whether Stafford would stay with the Rams or move to another team. With veteran quarterbacks highly sought after this season, Stafford could have chosen to finish his career with a third team. However, on February 28, Stafford and the Rams decided to continue their partnership, with Stafford officially committing to another season.
Stafford made a surprise appearance on the March 13 episode of the “New Heights” podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce. During the show, Stafford discussed his team and shared some surprising news about his future in the NFL.
Regarding the Rams, Stafford expressed his excitement about returning to the team and hopes his stay extends beyond just one more year. For those who believed he would retire after the 2025 season, that might not be the case.
“In the end, I know that they wanted me back. I wanted to be back,” he said on the podcast. “We just had to kind of figure that out and get to that point. We did, and I’m sure as hell happy that I’m going to be here for at least another year and hopefully some after that.”
Stafford is still performing at a high level. In 2024, he surpassed Eli Manning to become 10th on the NFL’s career passing yards and touchdowns list. He currently has 59,809 passing yards and 377 career passing touchdowns.
In another topic, when the Rams considered trading star wide receiver Cooper Kupp during the offseason, Stafford’s wife Kelly expressed her concerns on her podcast.
“My husband wants to win,” Kelly said on “The Morning After.” “He’s not trying to put his team in a bad situation.” She added, “The trading of Cooper, I guess I’m just a little confused. Because we were one play away from going to the NFC Championship, and I think if we go, we win.”
Stafford was asked about Kupp on the “New Heights” podcast and responded, “I ran into (Kupp) right when they told him about the trade talks. Obviously, that’s tough, especially for someone who’s meant so much to me in my career and helped me get settled with the Rams.”
Stafford later shared that he’s spent “a lot of time” with Kupp and that he’s “meant a ton to me as a player but even more as a person.” He added, “He’s a fantastic player; he means a ton to our team, but as a human being, he’s as good as it gets.”
Stafford concluded by saying he would “love an opportunity to continue to play with him.”