When the Los Angeles Rams signed quarterback Matthew Stafford to a contract extension back in 2022, the goal was to be fair, but team-friendly. Following a Super Bowl win, Stafford wanted to get paid what he was worth, but keep it possible for the Rams to continue building other areas of the team.
The result was Stafford signing a deal worth an average annual value (AAV) of $40M which was tied for the eighth most at the time. Since then, that has dropped down to 12th while Stafford is the fourth highest-paid quarterback in the NFL in 2024 with a cap-hit of $49.