If Stafford was making Lamar's contract demands, how would you handle it?

**AlbertN** · 03-30-2023, 08:58 AM

I think the biggest reason that there is so much disagreement about Lamar's contract negotiations is that there is so much uncertainty (rightfully) over how good he is. At one extreme some people think he's better than Mahomes and at the other extreme, some people think he's no better than Stafford (a very good Super Bowl winning quarterback). And that naturally causes people disagreements about how to approach his contract. If he were better than Mahomes than he is worth every penny of $250MM guaranteed over 5 years, and maybe even $300MM (Ex). On the other hand I don't think many here would want to make Stafford the first QB after Watson to get a fully guaranteed deal.

So in the interest of bringing us all back together a bit, if Matthew Stafford were our quarterback and making the same contract demands as Lamar what would you do if you were DeCosta?

I think this thought experiment will help us determine if our disagreements about how the Ravens are handling the negotiation are mostly based on how good we think Lamar actually is, or if they actually had to do with Ravens are negotiating. (I think the former.) I picked Stafford as my exemplar because he's a very good quarterback who's about 10th best in the league and not a lot of uncertainty about what he can and can't do. If you don't like Stafford, imagine whatever quarterback that you consider then 10th best in the league.

Please, please, don't make this a discussion about Lamar. I am curious to see how everyone would handle negotiations about a different player. I'll go first. If I were DeCosta, I would approach the situation exactly the same as DeCosta has done so far with Lamar.

**leachisabeast** · 03-30-2023, 09:03 AM

If Stafford was making these kinds of demands I don't believe he would have been traded. Despite being totally different players, Lamar and Stafford are in the same category of QBs (tier 2).... Nobody is giving those guys gaurenteed contracts unless it's a short term and cheaper deal like Cousins. Of course Lamar's value is higher than Staffords because he is younger.

**ERey** · 03-30-2023, 09:04 AM

I just checked Mathew Stafford’s availability through out his career. He has a proven history of playing an entire season. (I realize he got hurt this year, but he just won a Super Bowl also). Lamar not so much. Even so, I would not pay Stafford a fully guaranteed deal. But my guess is he wouldn’t ask for it.

**wickedsolo** · 03-30-2023, 09:14 AM

At their peak (and we dont know if Lamar has peaked yet), Stafford was a better overall QB.

**HbgPARavenfan** · 03-30-2023, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by AlbertN

I think the biggest reason that there is so much disagreement about Lamar's contract negotiations is that there is so much uncertainty (rightfully) over how good he is. At one extreme some people think he's better than Mahomes and at the other extreme, some people think he's no better than Stafford (a very good Super Bowl winning quarterback). And that naturally causes people disagreements about how to approach his contract. If he were better than Mahomes than he is worth every penny of $250MM guaranteed over 5 years, and maybe even $300MM (Ex). On the other hand I don't think many here would want to make Stafford the first QB after Watson to get a fully guaranteed deal.

So in the interest of bringing us all back together a bit, if Matthew Stafford were our quarterback and making the same contract demands as Lamar what would you do if you were DeCosta?

I think this thought experiment will help us determine if our disagreements about how the Ravens are handling the negotiation are mostly based on how good we think Lamar actually is, or if they actually had to do with Ravens are negotiating. (I think the former.) I picked Stafford as my exemplar because he's a very good quarterback who's about 10th best in the league and not a lot of uncertainty about what he can and can't do. If you don't like Stafford, imagine whatever quarterback that you consider then 10th best in the league.

Please, please, don't make this a discussion about Lamar. I am curious to see how everyone would handle negotiations about a different player. I'll go first. If I were DeCosta, I would approach the situation exactly the same as DeCosta has done so far with Lamar.

I'd say he's injury prone and not worth 200 mil fully gtd and to.pound sand

**ShadeRaven** · 03-30-2023, 09:19 AM

After being chosen No. 1 overall by the Detroit Lions' in the 2009 draft, Stafford went 74-90-1 in 12 seasons under three different head coaches — Jim Schwartz, Jim Caldwell and Matt Patricia.

**AlbertN** · 03-30-2023, 09:28 AM

Please, I'm not trying to get into how good or bad Stafford or Lamar is. If the 10th best quarterback in the league was making Lamar's contract demands how would you handle it?

Simple question.

**wickedsolo** · 03-30-2023, 09:32 AM

I wouldn’t pay him that kind of money. Primarily because of his age, but it’s not really a black-and-white situation. Context matters, and Stafford has (rumored) flirted with retiring a few times. I wouldn’t want to pay someone that kind of guaranteed money on a long term deal if they were thinking about retiring before the end of the contract.

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**leachisabeast** · 03-30-2023, 09:35 AM

Originally Posted by AlbertN

Please, I'm not trying to get into how good or bad Stafford or Lamar is. If the 10th best quarterback in the league was making Lamar's contract demands how would you handle it?

Simple question.

The only QB I'd consider giving a fully gaurenteed multi year deal to would probably be Mahomes.... Maaaybe Burrow but probably not. It would also be a max 5 year deal. Everyone else you pay market rates to.

**AlbertN** · 03-30-2023, 09:38 AM

Originally Posted by wickedsolo

I wouldn’t pay him that kind of money.

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What would you do? Would you franchise him? Exclusive or not? Would you try to trade him? What's the minimum you would take for him?

**dscola31** · 03-30-2023, 09:44 AM

I disagree with the premise. I think if they had any questions about Lamar's ability, it should have been answered by firing Roman and getting a 21st century OC in the building.

**HopsRaven** · 03-30-2023, 09:44 AM

Stafford is a better QB than Lamar, but I still wouldn't give him the contract Lamar wants. If he had demanded a contract like Lamar is demanding (and I don't think he would), I would handle it the same way EDC is handling Lamar right now: a NET that allows him to test the waters with other teams, especially considering his age. If someone else gave him that deal, I'd take the picks and move on.