Matthew Stafford is going to LA. Jared Goff and a haul of draft picks are coming to Detroit.
The Lions have traded Stafford to the Rams in exchange for Goff, two future first-round picks and a 2021 third-round pick, according to Adam Schefter.
The trade brings Stafford's 12-year tenure in Detroit to an end. And it ushers in a new era of Lions football, which may indeed be headlined by Goff.
The 26-year-old, who helped the Rams reach the Super Bowl in the 2018 season, is signed through 2024 with an average annual salary of $33.5 million. He's tied with Aaron Rodgers for the fifth highest-paid QB in the NFL.
The two first-round picks are the real value of the deal for the Lions, who are on the verge of another substantial rebuild under new GM Brad Holmes. Those picks will come in 2022 and 2023; the Rams didn't have a first-rounder to offer in 2021.
Holmes came to Detroit after 18 years in the Rams' front office, where he had a big hand in the team's decision to draft Goff first overall in 2016.
Since then, Goff has made two Pro Bowls and helped the Rams win two division titles. But his play has declined the past two seasons. He threw 20 touchdowns to 13 picks and posted a passer rating of 90.0 in 15 games in 2020.
In LA, Stafford will join a team that's coming off its third playoff appearance in the past four years -- the same number of playoff trips he made over the course of his career in Detroit.