Could Rams Find Heir to Matthew Stafford at 2024 Senior Bowl?

The Los Angeles Rams may return to the quarterback well in the 2024 NFL Draft to find a backup and eventual Matthew Stafford replacement. Could the Senior Bowl be of help?

Like it or not, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford won’t be under center forever. The 2023 season saw Stafford dip into the fountain of youth and re-emerge as one of the best quarterbacks in football. He’s the most important player to the Rams’ Super Bowl window, but he will be going into his age-36 season in 2024.

Eventually, someone is going to have to fill his shoes. General manager Les Snead may look to the 2024 NFL Draft for the heir to Stafford’s throne – and a worthwhile backup in the meantime.

This week offers front offices a unique chance to get a look at some of the class’ most polarizing talents. The Reese’s Senior Bowl will play host to seven quarterbacks hoping to prove themselves as NFL prospects. Is Los Angeles’ next quarterback in Mobile?

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

The top options at the Senior Bowl are Oregon’s Bo Nix and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. While Nix has my vote for the best passer at the all-star event, both are expected to be off the board rather quickly.

Los Angeles holds the 19th pick in April’s draft. Frankly, neither should be the Rams’ first use of a first-round pick since Jared Goff. In a win-now window, Snead has the opportunity to find an impact player with a premium pick. That’s a rare position for Los Angeles to be in, and a quarterback isn’t helping Stafford get back to a Super Bowl.

However, if either falls to Day 2 – where the Rams have two picks – they would be sensible picks. Both have their warts, Nix is an older prospect with questionable decision-making tendencies, and Penix has a scary medical history without elite tools to compensate. But as potential starters, they each have their fans. Penix’s deep ball may be the best in the class, and Nix’s playmaking nature transcends the conservative offense he played in.

Later in the draft, Los Angeles may find itself liking the value of Tulane’s Michael Pratt or South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler.

Pratt is an accurate passer who plays well out of structure. Rattler was once a top recruit but is more of a big-armed quarterback who is as toolsy as he is erratic.

Whether taken late in Day 2 or early on Day 3, both prospects should ask the Rams to spend less draft capital than the Heisman hopefuls ahead of them. They retain the potential to develop into starters (or at least better than the current options behind Stafford).

'Mr. Fantastic!' Rams Bolster Secondary in Post-Conference Title Mock Draft Projections

Frankly, the rest of the passers at the event – Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman, Tennessee’s Joe Milton III, and South Alabama’s Carter Bradley – aren’t great fits for Los Angeles’ timeline. None of them are locks to be drafted.

Hartman’s tools destine him to have the ceiling of a backup, but that’s a harder job than people give it credit for. Milton is the most talented of the trio, boasting an elite arm but a daunting transition to the league. He’s a lottery ticket in its purest form and probably wouldn’t be the second-best passer on the Rams roster. Bradley is a small-school passer without the production to garner much interest.