LOS ANGELES (AP) — Reigning NFL Most Valuable Player Matthew Stafford has agreed to a one-year contract extension through the 2027 season with the Los Angeles Rams.
The Rams announced the deal Thursday without immediately revealing its value. ESPN reported the 2027 deal is worth $55 million, a raise from his salary for the upcoming season.
The deal indicates that the 38-year-old Stafford is at least strongly thinking about staying with the Rams past
2026. That's notable because Stafford has professed a year-to-year mentality about his future ever since he led the Rams to a Super Bowl championship in February 2022.
The Rams then surprised the league by drafting Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick last month, but coach Sean McVay made it quite clear that Stafford is the Rams' starting quarterback for as long as he decides to continue his career.
Stafford is coming off one of the best seasons of his career in which he won his first MVP award, edging New England's Drake Maye in the voting. Stafford passed for 4,707 yards and a career-high 46 touchdowns with just eight interceptions before leading the Rams to two road playoff victories and a spot in the NFC championship game.
The upcoming season will be Stafford's 18th in the NFL and his sixth with the Rams, who acquired him in a trade with Detroit in 2021. Stafford is the sixth-leading passer in NFL history with 64,516 yards.
Los Angeles is among the preseason Super Bowl favorites again this year despite using its first-round pick on a quarterback who now seems unlikely to play for at least two years. The Rams' organized team activities begin next week.
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