Revisiting the LA Rams trade package for QB Matthew Stafford

When the LA Rams traded for Detroit Lions veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford, the team assembled what appeared to be a very hefty package for the veteran hurler. That trade package proved to be enough to secure the exchange, but not before LA Rams head coach Sean McVay personally lobbied team owner Stan Kroenke for the authorization to include not one, but two first-round draft picks as compensation.

In the end, the transaction involved two lauded NFL veteran quarterbacks, and three draft picks. The Rams, of course, emerged with Stafford. But the Detroit Lions, a team fully emerged in rebuilding the roster from the ground up, ended up with young veteran quarterback Jared Goff, a 2021 third-round draft pick, a 2022 first-round draft pick, and a 2023 first-round draft pick. The package looks like this:

But that really tells us nothing. After all, the picks could turn out to be gold or lead. So let’s dive a bit deeper for this one, shall we? For example, We know the results of two of the three LA Rams traded picks. So what is the status of those picks so far?

Minnesota meanders in

Well, nothing is simple, is it? The Detroit Lions traded the LA Rams’ first-round pick (32nd overall) as part of a package to trade back up into round one with the Minnesota Vikings for the 12th overall pick to select WR Jameson Williams.  That creates a rather ugly and confusing trade graphic as shown below:

So, eliminating the Minnesota Vikings from this analysis, the Detroit Lions have parlayed two of the LA Rams picks (plus a few of their own) into three young players and still have a 2023 first-round pick in the vault.

That’s a lot on the table and an overwhelming amount to process in one sitting. So let’s give a prerequisite to the next couple of slides. Comparing one player to a host of players may seem to favor the volume side. But the challenge of any team building a roster is to elevate the talent and production from promising to average, average to good, good to very good, very good to great, and great to elite.  While a handful of young prospects may deliver down the road, they will take time to do so.

Meanwhile, elite players deliver today. And that is what the LA Rams wanted in initiating this trade. Not tomorrow’s potential, but rather today’s production. What do I mean? Let’s look at what the Detroit Lion’s package looks like, and it should all become a bit clearer.

Lions package

What did the Lions get so far? Well, that’s a bit complicated.  The Lions straightforward dog QB Jared Goff and CB Ifeatu Melionwu. Unfortunately, the Lions chose to include the 32nd pick in a 2022 NFL Draft Day 1 trade, so while we will list the players selected as a result of that trade for the Lions, the 2022 rookies are only partially paid for by the Rams 32nd overall draft pick.

QB Jared Goff

Just as the LA Rams were pleased with QB Matthew Stafford’s performance, the Lions cannot be overly upset with the debut of Jared Goff in the Lions’ offense. While Goff played in 14 of the 17 scheduled games, he managed to complete 67.2 percent of his passes for 3,245 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He was sacked a horrendous 35 times, and his attempts of 494 passes were the third-fewest of his career.

The Lions receiving corps was in shambles all season, led by fourth-round rookie Amon-Ra St. Brown with 90 receptions for 912 yards and five touchdowns. Former teammate Josh Reynolds signed with the Lions for the final seven games of the season and helped the Lions win their three lone victories. Trial by fire? Perhaps. But the Lions GM is former LA Rams exec Brad Holmes, and he appears to have turned the corner with this franchise as we will soon see.

CB Ifeatu Melifonwu

Ifeatu Melifonwu is a promising and talented young defensive back who could prove to be quite the NFL player in the years to come. The previous Lions GM Bob Quinn traded star cornerback Darius Slay to the Philadelphia Eagles, in part to resolve a running dispute between HC Matt Patricia and Slay. Holmes, therefore, had to address that roster need.

Melifonwu is a 6-foot-3 210-pound rather raw prospect who shows tremendous upside. He played in seven games for the Lions, starting in four, and allowed just 60.9 percent of the passes thrown to his receiver to find their mark. He made 15 tackles, three deflected passes, and two fumble recoveries in his rookie season. While he was eased into the rotation, he did end the year having played 242 defensive snaps.

Rookie WR Jameson Williams (acquired by trade with Vikings)

The Detroit Lions entered the 2022 NFL Draft with a very long shopping list. But one of the critical needs was help for Jared Goff in the form of wide receiver talent. Standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 180 pounds, the young man is very athletically gifted with the ability to race down the field to push the back end of defenses or to put up tremendous yards-after-the-catch numbers

Rookie DL Josh Paschal (acquired by trade with Vikings)

Rookie edge rusher Josh Paschal was the second edge rusher chosen by the Lions, and he hails out of Kentucky. He has good size at 6-foot-3 and 268-pounds, but his best attribute is his maturity and leadership qualities. If the Lions are going to turn the ship around, they will need to have players who possess great character like Josh Paschal.

Okay, whew! That seems like a lot of compensation, doesn’t it? Well, there is one more first-round pick in the mix as well. So the Lions’ fans have to be happy with the trade so far. Now, what did the LA Rams get?

Rams package

I suppose it’s a bit misleading to refer to one NFL player as a package, even if that player is the Super Bowl-winning quarterback, Matthew Stafford. But what the hey? Since the Detroit Lions’ compensation in that 2021 trade qualifies as a package, let’s be even about it.

It’s truly not fair to compare Goff’s number to Stafford’s numbers, but we will anyway. Not to rank how much better Stafford is, but rather to establish a baseline of what the Rams quarterback position had delivered, and whether or not the Rams truly did get ‘more’ from the position with Stafford under center.

Under Goff, the Rams averaged 4,270 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions per year. He averaged 11.8 yards per completion and 7.5 yards per attempt.  Goff also averaged two game-winning drives per season. But in the playoffs, a different Goff emerged. Goff averaged 217 yards per playoff game, completed just 57.4 percent of his passes, averaged two touchdowns every three games, and one interception every three games.

Stafford sizzles for the LA Rams

While Matthew Stafford only has one season in the LA Rams offense under his belt, the numbers are pretty impressive. He passed for 4,886 yards, 41 touchdowns, and just 17 interceptions. He also completed 67.2 percent of his passes, but the yards per completion came in at a 12.1 average, while yards per attempt averaged 8.1.

Where Stafford really showed his sizzle was the NFL Playoffs, In four games, Stafford averaged a 70 percent completion rate, 297 yards per game, 2.25 TDs per game, and less than one interception per game. In four games, he had three game-winning drives and two fourth-quarter comeback victories.

This was in just his first season with the team, and the LA Rams roster by the time the NFL Playoffs arrived was decimated at the receiver, running back, and tight end positions. Despite all of those depleting injuries, Stafford got hotter.

Which side ‘wins’ this trade? In all honesty, both sides can claim that their team is better off as a result. The Lions have a number of promising young players who can truly become NFL starters. For the Rams? They rolled the dice on the hope that veteran QB Matthew Stafford could win playoff games and bring them a Lombardi. He did all of those things in his first season with the Rams.