The Detroit Lions were prepared to send quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a first-round pick and Teddy Bridgewater until Stafford personally stepped in and protested the trade, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Stafford was eventually traded to the Los Angeles Rams.
Stafford’s preferred list of trade destinations included the Los Angeles Rams, the Indianapolis Colts, and the San Francisco 49ers.
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When the 33-year-old quarterback heard a deal was being finalized which would’ve sent him to the Panthers, he stepped in.
“After consulting with his family, he made clear that he wanted to go to the Rams and so did his family,” Rapoport explained. “Stafford made his voice heard, and the Lions brass listened. Suddenly, the Panthers — despite offering a prime first-round pick and Teddy Bridgewater — were out.”
Stafford was reportedly also not interested in joining the New England Patriots.
In the end, Stafford was traded in exchange for the Rams’ 2021 third-round pick and two first-round picks in 2022 and 2023, as well as Jared Goff.
The former first overall pick from the 2009 NFL Draft is set to make his debut with the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday night, against the Chicago Bears.
[Via]