Rams Matthew Stafford Set to Break Unprecedented NFL Record

The Los Angeles Rams quarterback is simply playing football for fun at this point

Jun 3, 2025; Woodland Hills, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) throws the ball during organized team activities at Rams Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Matthew Stafford is really rich. Obviously, he's rich. He's a Super Bowl-winning quarterback living in Los Angeles with a loving family and millions in the bank, but it's the amount of millions that is about to set a new NFL record.

As a result of his contract negotiations with the Rams this offseason, according to CBS Sports ' John Breech, Stafford is set to become the first player to earn over $400 million in career earnings.

"The Rams quarterback was drafted in 2009, which is notable because that was two years before the NFL implemented the rookie wage scale, which limits how much a rookie can make on their first contract," wrote Breech.

"With no limits in place, Stafford signed a six-year, $72 million rookie deal in 2009 after the Detroit Lions made him the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. That rookie deal paid Stafford $12 million per year, and to put that in perspective, it took until THIS YEAR for the No. 1 overall pick to pass that number (Cam Ward's four-year, $48.75 million rookie contract will pay him $12.19 million per year)."

"Overall, Stafford ended up earning $219 million from the Lions."

"In 2021, the Lions shocked the NFL and shipped Stafford to Los Angeles to play for the Rams. The biggest pay day of his career came in 2022: After he led the Rams to a win in Super Bowl LVI, the team awarded him with an extension that paid him $61.5 million in 2022. That payment came in the first year after signing a four-year, $160 million extension in March 2022."

"In four seasons with the Rams, Stafford has made $145 million."

"The Rams QB signed a two-year, $84 million deal this offseason that will pay him $44 million for the 2025 season. According to NFL Media, Stafford has already been paid $4 million of that total and the final $40 million is fully guaranteed, so Stafford will be closing out the 2025 season with at least $404 million in career earnings."

Stafford got extremely lucky to be drafted before the rookie wage scale, as after spending four years on his rookie deal during the wage scale era, he was eligible for an extension. Stafford's second contract saw massive money being thrown his way as the introduction of the wage scale created the inflated quarterback market we see today.

Stafford just inches out Aaron Rodgers, as Rodgers is expected to fall short of the $400 million mark unless he wins a Super Bowl. Rodgers agreed to a low-cost, incentive-based deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers when in reality, he could've demanded more. Rodgers also took pay cuts with the Jets.

With the market set the way it is, Stafford is unlikely to become the first quarterback to earn over $500 million, as Patrick Mahomes signed a 10-year deal back in 2020 that guarantees he'll get there.

It should be noted that Stafford took less money to stay with the Rams as the Raiders were allegedly offering amounts exceeding $50 million per season.

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