What does Matthew Stafford being traded to Rams mean for Panthers?

The Carolina Panthers were one of several teams involved in trade talks for Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, per a league source with knowledge of the situation, however, late Saturday night, the Lions reportedly agreed to a deal to send the quarterback to the Los Angeles Rams for a 2021 third-round pick, 2022 first-round pick, 2023 first-round pick and quarterback Jared Goff.

Stafford and Lions came to an agreement following the conclusion of the 2020 NFL season that the team would seek a trade for the quarterback. Detroit had other interested teams outside of the Rams and Panthers, but the size of Goff’s contract assisted the team in getting two first-round picks.

So, what does that trade mean for the Panthers?

The Panthers are also highly interested in quarterback Deshaun Watson, per league sources, who has requested a trade from the Houston Texans, however, Houston would prefer not to lose the 25-year old star quarterback, one of the league’s top young quarterbacks. The compensation in the Stafford deal likely only increases the price of what the Texans could get for Watson, assuming they are forced to trade him. How much that could go up is unknown as a trade on this magnitude was already unprecedented.

Every team that lost out on the Stafford trade, of which there were several, will know Watson is now by far the biggest free agent quarterback left on the market.

On the draft side of things, the Lions hold the seventh overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft. The Panthers are just behind them at eight. Detroit appears far less likely to select a quarterback with that pick, but it could still want to take someone to develop behind Goff if the Lions believe the right player is available.

If Watson does not work out for the Panthers, drafting a quarterback will be the best option. Even if the the Lions do not want to draft a quarterback, they will be prime candidates to trade back in the draft, and a different team could still jump ahead of the Panthers. Carolina may still be forced to move up in the draft to get the quarterback it wants in the top 10.

The ramifications from the Lions’ deal with the Rams is far-reaching.

Detroit selected Stafford first overall in the 2009 NFL Draft out of the University of Georgia. As the Lions’ starter, Stafford was 74-90-1 and dealt with multiple injuries during his NFL career, however, he has only started less than 16 games once since 2011 (2019). He leads the Lions in every major passing category, passing for 45,109 yards and 282 touchdowns with 144 interceptions. During Stafford’s time with Detroit, the team has made the playoffs three times, losing in the Wild Card round on each occasion.

Stafford, 32, has two years remaining on his contract and is due $20 million in 2021 and $23 million in 2022, reasonable numbers for a veteran starting quarterback. For comparison, the three-year contract the Panthers gave Teddy Bridgewater averages over $20 million per season.

New general manager Scott Fitterer said the Panthers would be involved “on every deal.”

“We’re going to find out where things are going, what the landscape is in the NFL,” Fitterer said.

Just over a week into his hiring, that’s already being seen in Carolina’s search for its next quarterback. Stafford is the first domino of what will be a chaotic offseason of quarterback movement.