Los Angeles Rams star quarterback Matthew Stafford is unclear when his NFL career will come to an end.
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford will soon enter his age-38 season and 18th campaign in the NFL.
Stafford is coming off arguably the best season of his career, winning his first-ever NFL MVP award and being named first-team All-Pro. The Texas native also led the league in passing yards and touchdowns.
While his play was brilliant during the 2025 season, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the end of the road is approaching for Stafford. There is a real possibility the 2026 season could be his last, and discussions about his future will likely require careful consideration with his family as he decides how much longer he wants to continue playing.
That conversation will be unavoidable regardless of how the Rams perform this season — whether they go on to win the Super Bowl or fall short of the ultimate goal.
The when of it all is all speculation. In the meantime, Stafford recently spoke on how he is managing the final years of his playing career and how his body feels in it all.
In a recent appearance on the Pat McAfee show, the 38-year-old admitted that his body feels healthy.
"My body feels pretty good, luckily, which is great,” Staffors said. "Obviously battled the back stuff, but was able to make it through the season healthy. We've got a really good team in LA, and it's something that I don't take for granted."
Stafford and the Rams believe he could play for another handful of years, and his recent contract extension shows that. Last week, the two sides agreed to a one-year, $55 million extension keeping him through the 2027 season.
The contract has a maximum value of $015 million over the next two seasons; however, team escape clauses exist to manage the cap before his age-40 season.
As things stand, the future Hall of Famer is focused on bringing another title to Los Angeles to add to his illustrious resume and career.
"I talk about those with my wife, with my kids," Stafford said of his timeline. "They want me to keep doing it as long as I feel good and I'm excited about it, which I am. We've got a really good team in LA... and it's a whole bunch of fun."
Although the Rams drafted his successor in Ty Simpson, the reality is the organization is still firmly on the Stafford timeline. Whenever Stafford decides to call it quits, that's when Los Angeles will officially turn the page and hand Simpson the keys to the car.
