The greatest trade of LA Rams' Les Snead's career is the one deal not made

The Los Angeles Rams had several hurdles to overcome in the offseason. Long before the Matthew Stafford back injury, and even before the team negotiated his new contract, the team was willing to trade the veteran quarterback to a team of his choosing and find a new quarterback in the free agency market. How willing was Los Angeles to do so? Apparently, closer than fans realized at the time.

NFL Insider Adam Schefter brought the receipts to a recent podcast, detailing that general manager Les Snead held firm on the asking price of at least a second-round draft pick, but would have signed Stafford over instantly for a first-rounder. But the teams seeking a quarterback, the Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants, and Las Vegas Raiders, were unwilling to meet that asking price.

And in refusing to meet the asking price, three NFL teams unwittingly set the stage for a veteran quarterback to find renewed motivation to prove his worth. After 13 Weeks, the girl-dad quarterback has completed nearly two-thirds of his passes for 3,073 yards, 32 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. His longest pass was 88 yards, the longest of his career.

His 2025 quarterback rating of 111.7 is the best of his career as well.

Matthew Stafford was available at a bargain price

Imagine the Giants, Steelers, or Raiders with Matthew Stafford under center. Imagine the LA Rams without him? The conversations held by everyone at this point in the 2025 NFL season would be unrecognizable. Would the team have been okay? The fallback plan relied upon the team signing free agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

This wasn't the first time the Rams offered up a veteran on the trading block. The team traded away veteran cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Miami Dolphins for next to nothing. Even in trading players, the front office holds fast on sending a player to the team they approve.

And yet, Stafford stayed. A veteran in the NFL recognizes a good thing when he has it. Despite the offseason hiccups, it's clear that both Los Angeles and the Stafford household are thrilled with the way events turned out this season.

It's also quite clear that the former Georgia Bulldog has a real chance to earn his second NFL Championship ring.

All's well that ends well? Perhaps even as Les Snead is lauded for the work he has done at the control center of this team, this irony should not be lost on fans. The greatest personnel move Snead may have made for LA is doing nothing. Retaining Matthew Stafford for 2025 is already paying off handsomely.

As always, thanks for reading.