1 small detail puts Rams - Stafford contract renegotiation into perspective

Nothing can tear apart a fan base as quickly or as thoroughly as a contract dispute between the team and a key contributor. And so it goes for the Los Angeles Rams and veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford. But let's be clear. The Rams and Stafford had already hammered out a contractual relationship through 2026. So what's the problem?

The challenge is not in the two sides of this conundrum, but rather in our perspective of the distance between them. It's only human nature to choose sides. We've been doing it for centuries if not millennia. From property disputes with unruly neighbors to loud noises enraging us when we are trying to sleep, the human mind has an uncanny ability to turn self-motivation into right and everything that conflicts with those goals into wrong.

And so it goes.

So it's not simply a matter of right and wrong. Both sides of the Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams want to reach a conclusion that benefits the other side. The thing is finding that narrow common ground. At some point, it may be necessary for both sides to smile, shake hands, and walk away.

In April 1977, performer Dave Mason sang the song We Just Disagree, a slow ballad about two people who were in a relationship but arrived at a point in time when the relationship no longer made sense. The reason I bring it up is the chorus of that song nearly 50 years ago seems so appropriate to the situation facing the Rams and Stafford right now:

"So let's leave it alone, (be)cause we can(no)t see eye to eye
There aint no good guy, there aint no bad guy
There(i)s only you and me and we just disagree
Ooh ooh ooh, oh oh oh"

As performed by Dave Mason, 1977

We live in an imperfect word, living our imperfect lives. Living life is more art form than math or science, insomuch as there are seldom clearly defined exclusively right answers. We have to settle for the closest shade of compromise to yield us our own goals, while allowing enough margin for others to do the same. Laws like driving on the right side of the road and stopping at stop signs are man-made rules that give everyone an understanding of how those shades work to give us all common ground to get where we want to go in a timely and safe manner.

It seems like a walk around the mountain to get to the heart of this article, doesn't it? Well, this is all vital information to have in your pocket before we arrive. The reason? The long journey of setting compromises is a messy business, a series of trial and error exercises that had erred often enough to give some assurance to both sides that when it doesn't fail, it's time to stop there.

Paying for a 37-year old NFL quarterback is simply not a common event in the NFL, even now. You can point to the fact that Tom Brady played until he was well over 40 years old. But he is the exception, rather than the rule. For the Los Angeles Rams and Matthew Stafford, they are tasked with (re)crafting contract terms that will not only satisfy their immediate needs, but will serve as a template for future contracts for senior quarterbacks going forward.