Jets Country

Jets Reportedly Inquired With Lions About Trading For Matthew Stafford

The New York Jets reportedly checked in with the Detroit Lions about a trade for quarterback Matthew Stafford. Stafford was traded to the Los Angeles Rams

Max Goodman

What if Matthew Stafford was traded to the Jets this weekend rather than the Rams?

According to one NFL insider, it was briefly a possibility. 

New York checked in with the Lions about their veteran quarterback on Friday, according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. It was late in the day, per Breer, long after an assortment of other franchises had reached out.

Detroit circled back with the Jets the next day, but "talks didn't go very far," according to Breer's report.

What the Jets Can Learn From the Rams Trading For Matthew Stafford

The fact that negotiations didn't escalate between two teams isn't necessarily a surprise. New York has plenty of options going forward when it comes to quarterbacks and Stafford wasn't at the top of their list. That said, it's a good sign that the Jets are doing their due diligence, checking in with other teams about available assets just in case a solid deal happened to present itself. 

Stafford ended up going to the Rams on in a trade that sent two future first-rounders, a third-round pick and Los Angeles' quarterback Jared Goff back to Detroit. It's hard not to wonder what the Jets would have offered in a deal for Stafford.

Would it have been something similar? Perhaps a package including at least one of New York's first-round picks from this year's draft along with a later-round selection down the road and 23-year-old Sam Darnold.

The Lions already have the seventh pick in this spring's draft. Have to imagine it would've been tempting to add the second overall selection from New York.

Now that New York held off from going after Stafford, they can continue to position themselves for a different blockbuster this offseason. If they can't land Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans, the Jets will either stick with Darnold or draft a quarterback in the first round.

MORE ON MATTHEW STAFFORD AND DESHAUN WATSON:

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Jets for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. He also covers the New York Yankees, publisher  of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Yankees site, Inside The Pinstripes. Before starting out with SI, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. While at school, Goodman gathered valuable experience as an anchor and reporter on NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. Goodman previously interned at MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman and connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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