The Lions have moved on from Matthew Stafford, but Detroit yielded his potential backfill in the biggest trade of the NFL offseason to date.
In addition to three total draft picks, the Lions acquired Jared Goff from the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for Stafford. Goff, the first overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, led the Rams to the playoffs in three of his five seasons under center in LA, including the franchise's run to Super Bowl LIII in 2018.
Stafford reached out to Goff after the blockbuster deal went down. The 33-year-old shed light on their conversation in an interview with the Detroit Free Press' Mitch Albom.
"I shot him a text. We texted a little bit. Just told him that I know going out there I’ve got big shoes to fill," Stafford said, per ProFootballTalk. “It’s not lost on me that he was in the Super Bowl just a few years ago. He’s a really good player in his own right. I just wanted to let him know that I appreciate him as a player and obviously, to reach out to me if there was anything he needed when it comes to Detroit, just as far as advice or places to stay, anything. I know that he feels that he can reach out to me, and I know I can reach out to him with anything in L.A. too. So it’s been good."
Goff is the Lions' new starting quarterback as it stands, but it remains to be seen if the franchise has long-term plans for the 26-year-old. Detroit owns the seventh overall pick in this year's draft, and it potentially could target its next franchise signal-caller with that first-round selection.
As for Stafford, he'll enter the 2021 season with the best opportunity he's had in his NFL career to date to legitimately compete for a Super Bowl.
