NFL Says No Tampering Violations For Raiders With Matthew Stafford

Reports surfaced on Wednesday that Rams QB Matthew Stafford met with Raiders minority owner Tom Brady in Montana after Los Angeles permitted the veteran to speak with other teams to gauge his value.

Many speculated whether the meeting violated the league’s tampering rules considering Stafford is still under contract with the Rams.

Per Vincent Bonsignore, the NFL provided a statement saying there was no issue with the two sides speaking because the Rams granted Stafford permission to speak with other teams.

“There’s no issue here. The Rams gave the player and his agent permission to speak to the Raiders.”

Stafford, 37, 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 is due $27 million and $31 million in the final two years of his deal. 

In 2024, Stafford appeared in 16 games for the Rams and threw for 3,762 yards while completing 65.8 percent of his passes for 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

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