Matthew Stafford, Sean McVay Celebrated Rams Trade With Dinner in Mexico

Stafford's wife Kelly and McVay’s fiancée Veronika joined the new Rams duo during a dinner in Los Cabos, Mexico, per The MMQB's Albert Breer.

Matthew-stafford-sean-mcvay

The Rams completed a trade with the Lions to acquire quarterback Matthew Stafford on Saturday, and it didn't exactly take long for Stafford to get acquainted with Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay

Stafford and McVay reportedly had dinner together shortly after the trade was agreed to on Saturday, according to The MMQB's Albert Breer. As the NFL world reacted to a true blockbuster deal, the new Rams' duo reportedly enjoyed dinner with Stafford’s wife Kelly and McVay’s fiancé Veronika in Los Cabos, Mexico. It's likely Stafford and McVay will dive into some film together in the coming weeks, but on Saturday, more important matters awaited.

"Once the deal was agreed to, some 1,100 miles south of L.A., McVay and Stafford were sitting down for dinner to celebrate a fresh start of their own," Breer wrote on Sunday night. "The coach and his new quarterback happened to be among a number of NFL people in Cabo last week—Saints coach Sean Payton and QB Drew Brees, Rams LT Andrew Whitworth and others were nearby, too, over the last few days."

So how exactly did Stafford and McVay connect so quickly? Kelly Stafford is largely to thank. 

McVay is friends with Bills receivers coach Chad Hall, who is Kelly Stafford's brother. The connection led to a friendly relationship between the Staffords and McVay in recent years, and upon the trade's completion, the two couples joined in Cabo to celebrate.

Saturday's celebratory dinner almost didn't come to fruition. Numerous teams were involved in the Stafford sweepstakes, per Breer, including Washington, Carolina, Indianapolis and San Francisco. Both Washington and Carolina reportedly offered its respective 2021 first-round picks, and the Football Team also reportedly offered their 2021 third rounder. But ultimately, Los Angeles provided the greatest haul of picks, bringing Stafford and McVay together for the first of many dinners (and perhaps playoff victories) in the coming years.

Check out Breer's full column for more details on the trade, and plenty more on Super Bowl week.


Published
Michael Shapiro
MICHAEL SHAPIRO

Michael Shapiro is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated. He is a Denver native and 2018 graduate of The University of Texas at Austin.