Matthew Stafford is officially the LA Rams quarterback for 2021

Effective at 1:00 pm PT on March 17, 2021, a new sheriff is officially in charge of the LA Rams offense and his name is QB Matthew Stafford. The new NFL season begins on this date, at that moment in time. It’s a new chapter of both the LA Rams and the Detroit Lions organizations. Suddenly the fates of two dissimilar teams have become undeniably linked.

The blockbuster trade that took place more than two weeks ago of former Rams QB Jared Goff and three future draft picks (a 2021 third-round pick and 2022 and 2023 first-round selections) to the Detroit Lions for Stafford is now formally cemented on the books. There is no turning back now. The keys to the ignition have been handed over to a new field general.

So let us examine anew just exactly what he might bring to the controls. Will he be a steady hand at the tiller? That’s certainly the plan now, isn’t it? The LA Rams reached a monumental decision somewhere in the 2020 season that their then-current quarterback Jared Goff was no longer the answer.

At that moment, the connection to Goff and the head coach Sean McVay was irreparably damaged. No matter what else happened, Goff would not be back to quarterback the Rams. The trade of Goff began in January of 2021. It simply required several weeks to find the trade partner. The Detroit Lions, dangling QB Matthew Stafford, emerged as that team.

Now entering his 13th year in the NFL, he was drafted first overall in 2009 out of the University of Georgia by the Detroit Lions, and he has been a testament to durability and toughness. In nine out of the last 10 years, he’s played in all 16 games, most recently in 2020. So the Rams are getting a man that suits up, that answers the bell.