These past few weeks, Matthew Stafford probably had a little déjà vu—back to the days when he got shipped from Detroit to LA. And no, not the good kind where he won a Super Bowl in year one. We’re talking about the kind where his name kept popping up in trade rumors, making it sound like his time in LA might be running out.

Now let’s be real—Stafford had success with the Lions, there’s no doubt about that. But it won’t be wrong to say that LA was the place where he kinda made it home, right? Then the offseason came, bringing tons of rumors that Stafford would be traded from LA. But nope, the Rams finally decided that they’re staying put with their QB and Stafford will now play at least one season in LA. But if you’re thinking that the negotiations were pretty easy for Stafford—think again.

On Wednesday, Matthew Stafford just dropped by the latest episode of the New Heights podcast with Travis and Jason Kelce. When Jason asked, “What was ultimately the deciding factor to come back and reside with LA?” Stafford first admitted that it was a joint process given the QB wasn’t a free agent. Then remembered a similar situation he felt when he was being traded to LA from Detroit. “I remember when I was getting traded from Detroit to LA, really a couple of weeks before that, you know, I’d made it known that I wanted to be traded from Detroit,” he said.

“And I can’t tell you how much I spent on Zillow at that point looking at houses in Indy in there and all those places back then, right? So you’re just like, and I am sitting there going, man, where am I going to be? Where are my kids going to school, all that kind of stuff?” Honestly, can you blame him? The guy spent most part of his pro football career with the Lions (for over a decade). And then he was traded to the Rams. And where things get pretty messy for Stafford and his family.

You see, Stafford married his long-time girlfriend, Kelly, back in 2015 when he was still with the Lions. After tying the knot, the couple stayed for six years in Detroit before moving to LA. You can bet that was the toughest decision to make for the Staffords, especially for Kelly. When Matthew was traded to the Rams, his wife penned a letter to Detroit. And let’s just say she wasn’t happy at all while transitioning from Detroit to LA.

“I would love to sit here and tell you I have no feelings for this place and it was easy to move on because I feel like that’s what is supposed to happen when you move, but I just can’t do it,” she wrote in her letter. “Detroit still has my heart, no matter how hard I tried to push it out, and sitting here reflecting, it’s starting to become a little more clear to me.” Safe to say, Matthew wasn’t looking for a déjà vu moment in 2025. And why would he?

The guy is the father of four little girls, right? One of the many reasons why he’s locked in and ready to run it back with the Rams. “But I think in the end, I know that they wanted me back. I wanted to be back. We just had to kind of figure that out and get to that point, we did. And I am sure so happy that, you know, I am going to be here for at least another year and hopefully some after that.” After all, the veteran feels lucky enough to play in LA.

Matthew Stafford feels lucky to be with the Rams

When the 2024 season wrapped up, no one had expected that Matthew Stafford’s future would be up in the air. The rumors had Stafford heading everywhere—New York, Vegas… pretty much any team with a QB question mark had his name in the mix. However, after weeks of speculations, the Rams agreed for a new deal with their Super Bowl winning QB. And now? Well, Stafford expressed his affection for playing with his teammates and in front of the fans again.

During his chat with the Kelce brothers on the New Heights podcast, Travis Kelce stated, “It feels like it’s where (LA) you kind of made it home, or at least on the football field, man.” In his response, the 37-year-old QB confessed how lucky he was to play in LA with Sean McVay and his teammates. “I’ve been lucky to be playing here with coach, you know, McVay and all my teammates and all those guys for, you know, a few years now,” he said.

Or can we say that the Rams have also been lucky to sign Stafford to their roster? Because let’s be real. Ever since Matthew Stafford joined the Rams, the team has qualified for the playoffs three times in the last four seasons. And how can we forget that Super Bowl win back in the 2021 season, right? So yeah, safe to say both sides lucked out having each other—and the fans? They’re getting a hell of a treat, too. After all, Stafford loves to play in front of his fans.

“I love going to work and playing in front of the fans. It’s a blast. It has been a really cool thing, obviously coming from Detroit, very different place in Los Angeles. Love both of them. But this has been a cool change up and my family’s settled in great and we love it here,”
he further mentioned. Go on, Rams fans—go ahead and throw those fists in the air.