The Los Angeles Rams just got the best possible news for the future of the team ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft

The Los Angeles Rams and quarterback Matthew Stafford have made significant progress towards a new contract to keep him in Los Angeles.

AJ Schulte — College Football Trending News Writer
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Les Snead, general manager of the Los Angeles Rams shakes the hand of quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) following a game against the New Orleans Saints at SoFi Stadium.
Nov 2, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Les Snead, general manager of the Los Angeles Rams shakes the hand of quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) following a game against the New Orleans Saints at SoFi Stadium. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the biggest talking points surrounding the Los Angeles Rams offseason has been the long-term outlook for quarterback Matthew Stafford. Stafford is 38 years old and his contract ends at the end of the 2026 season.

Stafford’s contract has been a conversation of every offseason the last two years, and this offseason has been no different.

However, according to Ian Rapoport, that could come to an end here this offseason. Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams are making “significant progress” on a new extension to bring him in the building this offseason.

Matthew Stafford will be sticking around the Los Angeles Rams

I’ll be curious to see if this is a true extension or a fancy restructure. The Rams have stated Stafford could play for multiple seasons, but that he’s also earned the right to play his contract “year by year”.

Stafford’s $40 million salary guarantee vested on the fifth day of the 2026 league year, so I’m not sure what else they could add to bring him in the building this offseason. Last year, Stafford signed a renegotiated two-year contract with the Los Angeles Rams worth $80 million in new money.

However, a true contract extension could have massive ramifications. Keeping Stafford beyond 2026 extends their Super Bowl window beyond an “all in” 2026 season. His contract currently voids on February 20th of 2027.

A true contract extension could drop his cap hit as well. Currently, Stafford has a $48.26 million cap hit for 2026 and $33.6 million in 2027. If they restructure that deal with a new contract extension, that could open up some cap room over the next two seasons.

Additionally, what could this signal for the Los Angeles Rams’ plans for the 2026 NFL Draft? They keep getting linked to a quarterback early in the draft (even if it doesn’t make sense). A true multi-year Stafford extension undoubtedly would put that thought process to bed.

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