Matthew Stafford Discusses How Much Longer He’ll Play After Signing One-Year Extension

Rams QB Matthew Stafford officially signed a one-year extension worth up to $60 million to lock him in for the 2026 season at age 38. 

Appearing on the Pat McAfee Show, Stafford talked about his future in the league. He said his body feels good, but he’s taking it year by year when deciding how much longer he’ll play. 

“It is something delicate,” Stafford said. “I got to, you know, navigate the end of it, and I’m not sure when that is. I want to be fair to our team, but I also want to be fair to myself, and take this thing year to year.”

Stafford also noted the importance of his family, who want him to keep playing as long as he feels able to. 

“I talk about those with my wife, with my kids. They want me to keep doing it as long as I feel good and I’m excited about it, which I am. We’ve got a really good team in LA… and it’s a whole bunch of fun.”

Stafford’s extension runs through 2027 but the guarantees that year don’t vest until next March, leaving both sides some flexibility. 

Stafford, 38, is a former first-round pick of the Lions, who took him with the No. 1 overall pick out of Georgia in 2009. He was in the final year of a five-year, $76.5 million contract when he and the Lions agreed to a five-year, $135 million extension back in 2017.

Stafford was involved in a blockbuster trade that sent him to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for QB Jared Goff and draft picks in 2021. He signed a four-year extension worth $160 million that included $135 million guaranteed a year later. 

The Rams and Stafford later reworked that deal going into the 2024 season, moving money up from the back of the contract. Stafford was due $27 million and $31 million in the final two years of his deal when the two sides reworked his existing contract again in 2025. 

In 2025, Stafford appeared in all 17 games for the Rams and threw for 4,707 yards while completing 65.0 percent of his passes for 46 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

We’ll have more on Stafford as the news is available.