At 37 years old, quarterback Matthew Stafford is in the final stages of his NFL career that has seen him hoist a Lombardi Trophy. Despite earlier offseason questions regarding his future, the Los Angeles Rams restructured his contract, ensuring his return to the team through 2025.
However, the front office should not overlook the future of the most important position, despite Stafford's presence. Besides the former No. 1 overall pick, the Rams' quarterback room includes veteran Jimmy Garoppolo, who joined the team last offseason and recently re-signed for another year, and Stetson Bennett, who the Rams drafted 128th overall in 2023 after he led Georgia to back-to-back national championships.
Should general manager Les Snead want to make things more interesting amongst the group, one name that has floated around the league is Patriots backup QB Joe Milton III. According to Mark Daniels of MassLive, the Patriots have received multiple trade inquiries about the second-year player.
Despite playing in only one game as a rookie in 2024, teams know the former Tennessee product for his elite size, arm strength, and physical tools, which were all displayed when he led the Patriots to a 23-16 victory over the Buffalo Bills in Week 18. Entering the game halfway through, he completed 22 of 29 passes for 241 yards, with one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown.
Joe Milton with one of the best "plays that didn't count" of the season pic.twitter.com/NuwGLcLfwD
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) January 5, 2025
During the NFL annual meetings, Patriots first-year head coach Mike Vrabel commended the backup quarterback despite a difficult season that saw Milton watch from the sidelines for the majority.
“Yeah, I think Joe did everything that they asked him to do last year," Vrabel said. "Sounds like in conversations that he worked extremely hard, and that’s tough when you’re a quarterback,” Vrabel said. “Everybody wants to play. Everybody wants to be the starter, everybody and that’s great to have that attitude. And he was ready for his opportunity there late in the season, which I commend him on, just like I would any player that sat there and went through a long season, a difficult season, and then got the opportunity, went out, won a football game, played well, helped his team win."
If the Rams were to consider pursuing Milton, what would be the cost, and would it be worthwhile for a player whose only playing time was in a meaningless Week 18 game? We have seen this story unfold many times regarding the prices teams are willing to pay for a quarterback.
For instance, the Dallas Cowboys traded a fourth-round pick two years ago for Trey Lance. In contrast, the Seattle Seahawks gave up a third- and fifth-round pick for Sam Howell last year, demonstrating that the cost of quarterbacks with more to prove can be unpredictable. However, acquiring the 25-year-old could give the Rams a young player to develop behind Stafford,
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