Tom Brady has reportedly made an approach to Matthew Stafford as he bids to fix the Las Vegas Raiders’ quarterback issues.
After the franchise moved on from Derek Carr in 2022, Aidan O’Connell, Jimmy Garroppolo, Brian Hoyer, Gardner Minshew, and Desmond Ridder have all had a shot at leading the Silver and Black.
None have shown enough promise to indicate they can carry a team to glory — or even the playoffs.
Brady is going to be heavily involved in the Raiders organization after his bid to become a minority owner in the $6.7 billion franchise was finally improved in 2024.
The No.1 priority after securing new head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Spytek is finding a quarterback.
With seven Super Bowl triumphs, Brady knows a lot about the position and is expected to have a huge say in the Raiders’ decision.
Stafford won a ring of his own with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021 but Sean McVay has reportedly given him permission to speak to other teams.
The 37-year-old is believed to want a huge raise on his $27 million contract, with NFL Network’s Peter Schrager suggesting he could demand upwards of $50 million.
While the Rams are publicly committing to keeping Stafford, behind closed doors the franchise appears to be willing to let him test the market.
Brady has already sounded out the former Detroit Lions passer, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
There is still a long way to go in terms of getting a deal done and the Raiders would have to agree trade compensation with Los Angeles, as well as Stafford’s new contract.
But with almost $100 million in projected cap space, Las Vegas is few franchises that could afford the Super Bowl winner.
Other options are on the table. Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders are the biggest names in April’s Draft class, which is not being talked about as a generational group.
Las Vegas holds the sixth pick and could opt to trade up or hope one of Ward or Sanders falls — a tough proposition with several QB-needy teams.
The free agent class includes Sam Darnold, Justin Fields, and, intriguingly, Russell Wilson — Carroll’s Super Bowl-winning QB at the Seattle Seahawks.
Rams head coach McVay addressed Stafford’s future on the Fitz & Whit podcast.
“At the end of the day, we had something in mind, he had something in mind, and nobody was right or wrong,” he said. “And then, ultimately, you’re saying there’s a ton of interest, because this guy’s an incredible player.
“There’s no discrepancy on us wanting him to continue to lead the way and be our quarterback.
“The interesting and the challenging dilemma and dynamics within this are, ‘Hey, how do you continuously as a head coach look at the short term and the long term and be able to figure out what does that really look like?’
“There is no dispute — and let’s not get it twisted in regarding to anybody wanting him to be our quarterback.
“Now, there’s layers to it. You have to be able to say, ‘Hey, how do we continuously build? How do we support him? How do we make sure that he’s getting what is his worth relative to those things?’”
What does that mean in coach speak? We don’t want to pay him as much as he wants and are keeping the door open for a trade — at the right price.
Much like his time on the field and in the booth, all eyes are on Brady’s first foray into life as an executive. Get this call wrong and it won’t take long for the doubters to make noise.
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