After the Rams lost to the Eagles last weekend, quarterback Matthew Stafford said he will “take some time to think about” his playing future while adding that it “sure feels like” he has good football left in him.
That suggested that Stafford’s thoughts will be on his future with the Rams. Stafford agreed to an adjusted contract shortly before the 2024 season and may be in the market for a new deal this offseason as he stands to make $23 million under his current pact. On Thursday, Rams head coach Sean McVay said that he’s hoping for a quicker resolution this time around.
“We don’t want to have that go on again,” McVay said, via Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. “I don’t think that’s good for anybody. I think sooner than later, being able to get that clarity. Understanding clear, open and honest communication. I think there’s a lot of love coming from our part. I think there’s a lot of appreciation coming from his part as well. And I think a lot sooner than later is an ideal scenario.”
McVay said “we’ll talk about all those things at the appropriate time” when asked if Stafford will be playing for the Rams unless he retires, so there’s a lot to work out before we’ll now whether the Rams and Stafford will be in business together again in 2025.
Rams defensive lineman Braden Fiske suffered a knee injury in last Sunday’s loss to the Eagles and he’ll need some time to recover from it this offseason.
Head coach Sean McVay said on Thursday, via multiple reporters, that Fiske will need to have a procedure on his knee to repair the injury. The recovery from the procedure is not expected to impact his availability for the 2025 season.
Fiske had a tackle and a sack against the Eagles to wrap up an outstanding rookie season. The second-round pick had 44 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries for the NFC West champs.
That effort led to Fiske being named a finalist for defensive rookie of the year on Thursday. First-round pick Jared Verse is also a finalist for the award and the duo gives reason for optimism about a return to the postseason in 2025.
The Associated Press has announced the finalists for the eight awards that will be given out as part of the NFL Honors show on February 6.
The marquee award is the Most Valuable Player prize and the consensus has been for some time that the award will go to either Bills quarterback Josh Allen or Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. Jackson’s bid got a boost when he was voted a first-team All-Pro, but we’ll have to wait a little longer before finding out if voters also put him ahead of Allen on their MVP ballots.
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, and Lions quarterback Jared Goff are the other finalists.
Barkley, Burrow, and Jackson are also finalists for the offensive player of the year award. Ravens running back Derrick Henry and Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase round out the contenders for that prize.
Burrow is a three-time finalist as he’s also up for comeback player of the year. Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez, Bills safety Damar Hamlin, and Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins join him in that category.
The other award finalists are:
Coach of the Year
Dan Campbell, Lions; Kevin O’Connell, Vikings; Sean Payton, Broncos; Dan Quinn, Commanders; and Andy Reid, Chiefs.
Assistant Coach of the Year
Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady; Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio; Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores; Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn; and Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.
Defensive Player of the Year
Eagles linebacker Zack Baun; Browns defensive end Myles Garrett; Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson; Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II; and Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt.
Offensive Rookie of the Year
Raiders tight end Brock Bowers, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers, Broncos quarterback Bo Nix, and Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Eagles cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, Rams defensive lineman Braden Fiske, Eagles cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, Dolphins linebacker Chop Robinson, and Rams linebacker Jared Verse.
The Bears have requested Rams assistant Aubrey Pleasant to interview for their vacant defensive coordinator job, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports.
Pleasant currently serves as the Rams’ assistant head coach and defensive passing game coordinator.
He has been with the Rams for two seasons, working with the defensive backs and serving as assistant head coach in 2023.
Pleasant was an offensive consultant for the Packers in 2022 and the defensive backs and passing game coordinator for the Lions in 2021-22. In his first stint with the Rams, he was the cornerbacks coach from 2017-20.
Pleasant also has interned for the Browns (2013) and worked for Washington (2013-16).
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford alluded to having injured ribs after the team’s season-ending loss to the Eagles last Sunday, but his wife Kelly added more information about the extent of the injury this week.
Stafford said he was dealing with the injury “to a varying degree for some time” in his postgame press conference and said he didn’t feel they were much of a factor in his performance. The quarterback never appeared on the injury report because of his ribs, but Kelly Stafford’s comments on her The Morning After podcast suggest that the issue should have been disclosed after Week 15.
“He cracked four ribs, but just didn’t really let anyone in to know really much about it,” Stafford said. “Continued his everyday process like nothing was wrong, would come home and be miserable.”
After the loss to the Eagles, Matthew Stafford said he would “take some time to think about” his future. He’ll also presumably be taking some time to heal up after playing hurt to finish out the season.
