LA Rams beat the odds in their Matthew Stafford trade

The LA Rams became the template for NFL teams in the 2022 NFL offseason. After the team traded quarterback Jared Goff and multiple draft picks for veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford, all eyes turned to the Rams to see how it would all play out. Despite facing adversity with injuries at a number of positions, the team stayed on track and won nine of their last ten games.

Four of those wins were consecutive victories in the NFL Playoffs, which brought the Lombardi Trophy to the city of Los Angeles for the first time in the history of the LA Rams franchise. It was a historic event that capture the nation and turned the steering wheel for many NFL teams’ General Managers. But the question is, can a trade for a veteran quarterback pan out? Or did the LA Rams hit the Power Ball lottery?

For that answer, I’m borrowing some impressive data tracking recently posted on social media. In the data collected and presented, the goal was to represent the number of times that trading for a veteran QB was attempted in the NFL, and the ultimate results:

The Rams were an unqualified success. Just one year after that trade, the Rams were celebrating a victory in Super Bowl LVI. All in all, the LA Rams have been the only team in the NFL since 2000 to trade for a veteran quarterback and win a Super Bowl as a result.

That is not insignificant. In fact, it is a testimony to the amount of work the LA Rams offense and team underwent to make it all work out. Perhaps there are multiple reasons why Rams HC Sean McVay doubted his future in the NFL. But the LA Rams, having hoisted one Lombardi Trophy, are beginning to resemble a team eager to hoist a second.