If professional football was a logical game and the way the information we receive about it followed predictable, common-sense rules, then Matthew Stafford’s new contract should have been the biggest story of the offseason. The Los Angeles Rams, freshly-crowned as Super Bowl champions, persuaded their most important player to commit to the franchise for what might be the rest of his career, at an appropriately eye-popping figure of $160 million over four years. Needless to say, it hasn’t been the biggest story at all. Not remotely close to it. It wasn’t in the same stratosphere of public interest as Aaron Rodgers’ game of “will he, won’t he” (hint: yes, he will). Nor did it compare to Tom Brady’s tap dance of “goodbye/was it really goodbye?/no it wasn’t goodbye.” It didn’t generate as many waves as Kyler Murray’s simmering brouhaha with the Arizona Cardinals. It’s not as big a talking point as Russell Wilson’s upping of sticks to Denver. Much less has been spoken of Stafford’s well-deserved fiscal bonanza than the respective situations surrounding Jimmy Garoppolo and Baker Mayfield. Sure, those situations are in flux, but if we’re talking about the simple inking of a contract, Deshaun Watson’s five years at $230 million from the Cleveland Browns got the chatter mill rumbling far more strongly than Stafford’s deal. But we shouldn’t be surprised. First, Stafford signing for all that money wasn’t any kind of shock, and there was never any serious thought he would go elsewhere. More pertinently, this was a very Los Angeles Rams kind of deal — and story. The Rams don’t get linked with incredibly splashy moves, they just make them. They don’t talk about who and what they are going to go after, they just do it. And it is why they are more dangerous than ever going into the new campaign, somehow positioned as a reigning champ that is managing to slip under the radar. By the time anyone began talking about Stafford’s contract, it was already done. No fuss. No drawn out nonsense. No soap opera. No guessing games on Pat McAfee’s show. No wondering. No deadlines. No arm wrestling between player and organization — at least not publicly. No threat of a holdout. No deleting the team’s mentions from the player’s social media accounts. Somehow, while operating in the media capital of the world, the Rams have shown themselves able to keep their business a secret, right up until the moment they no longer want it to be. They haven’t led the news cycle since lifting the Vince Lombardi Trophy, but they’ve been getting things done. Stafford was a formality, sure. But despite losing Von Miller in free agency, Los Angeles might actually have improved its defense, adding future Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner from the Seattle Seahawks. Wide receiver Allen Robinson signed as a free agent, too. Like Wagner, Robinson was an acquisition made for a specific purpose, for good money, but without a hint of desperation about either deal. Wagner will return to his SoCal roots and adds a fresh dimension to a defense that was rock-solid when it had to be last season. Robinson offers a different, yet complementary look to 2021 receiving king Cooper Kupp. There have been some smaller deals, too. Lineman Travin Howard signed a new contract. So did Pro Bowl kicker Matt Gay. An offer is out to Odell Beckham Jr. and there are no whispers of him wanting to go anywhere else. Aaron Donald, having briefly flirted with retirement, is returning instead, with the monetary details to be hashed out. Things operate with a sense of calm with the Rams these days. Maybe it is because of how general manager Les Snead does his business, or just because the Rams pay well enough that players don’t gain much from holding their feet to the fire. But if you’re looking for drama, look elsewhere. Getting deals done before they become a pressing issue is one of the most vital parts to building a successful team. Having Stafford wrapped up so soon after the Super Bowl triumph meant everyone knew where they stood. That includes Robinson, who admitted the chance to catch balls from Stafford was a major factor in choosing L.A. The worst thing you can say about the Rams is that this all means they’re comparatively boring, getting all their business attained without any major blow-ups, sticking points or dramas to overshadow the preparation for the new campaign. The best thing you can say — or the most worrying for everyone else — is that it is only the middle of April, yet somehow the Rams seem ready already, with scarcely a bump in the road to slow down their bid for another championship. |
