Matthew Stafford Reportedly Wanted Trade to Rams to Play for Sean McVay

Matthew Stafford's 12-year career with the Detroit Lions is all but over after his old team agreed to trade him to the Los Angeles Rams in a blockbuster deal Saturday evening that sent signal-caller Jared Goff and some draft picks the other way, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Stafford, who had mutually agreed to part ways with the Lions as they begin a significant rebuild, apparently welcomed a move to L.A. in order to work with head coach Sean McVay, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

"Stafford wanted this, the chance to maximize talent with McVay," Fowler said.

McVay became the Rams' coach in 2017, and the team immediately featured the top-scoring offense in the league. The Rams followed that up by scoring the second-most points per game in 2018, when they went to the Super Bowl.

L.A. has since regressed, finishing No. 11 in points in 2019 and No. 22 in 2020. However, adding Stafford to the mix could give the signal-caller and the Rams some new life.

Stafford is just one year removed from a dominant eight-game showing in 2019, when he threw for a career-high 9.1 yards per adjusted pass attempt in addition to tossing 19 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also completed 64.3 percent of his passes.

The 32-year-old still excelled in 2020 despite missing No. 1 wideout Kenny Golladay for 11 games, finishing 14th in quarterback rating and 15th in QBR. The Lions were also in turmoil that year, with the team firing head coach Matt Patricia after 11 games.

Now Stafford gets a second life in L.A. and a chance to work with some talented wideouts, most notably Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods. A stout offensive line also paved the way for some excellent late-season running for rookie Cam Akers.

Stafford could be the missing link for the Rams, who are looking to improve upon last year's 10-6 record and divisional-round finish.