What they're saying: Analysts, experts weigh in on Matthew Stafford's trade to the Rams

The agreement to a blockbuster trade on Saturday ended an era in Detroit, while also potentially kick-starting a rebuild (or, retool?) for the Lions.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford is heading to the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Jared Goff, first-round draft picks in 2022 and 2023 and a third-round pick in this year's NFL Draft.

It was the NFL's first blockbuster trade of 2021. Here's what people are saying.

Detroit News columnist and 97.1 FM radio host Bob Wojnowski:

ESPN analyst and occasional GM candidate Louis Riddick:

Peter Schrager, FoxSports.com writer Good Morning Football analyst:

NFL.com's Ian Rapaport:

NFL personality and former punter Pat McAfee loves the deal for both quarterbacks.

Former ESPN reporter Josina Anderson

SportsCenter is on top of things as usual. It will be interesting to see if this is ever a topic of conversation during game broadcasts!

Pro Football Focus sheds some light on the comparison of Stafford and Goff.

ESPN's Bill Barnwell says that while Stafford might be walking into a better situation, the expectations on him are higher than ever.

We should have known that former Lions quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky would have good things to say about the deal.

Dan Pizzuta of Sharp Football Analysis writes: 

"On the other side, the Rams will undoubtedly get surplus value for the quarterback. Stafford will count for just $20 million on the Rams’ cap for 2021. With the $22.2 million in dead money left on the cap from Goff, the Rams will take on $7.25 million more to upgrade to Stafford than if they had just kept Goff. But in 2022, Stafford will only count for $23 million on the cap, which is a $10.95 million savings on the cap compared to what Goff would have cost."

Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times writes: 

"Stafford was within reach, and Sean McVay was increasingly convinced this was the player who could lift his team to the next level — even though Stafford never actually experienced that level with the Lions. So that’s the question, and one we’ll figure out in short order: Was the problem Stafford, or the team around him?"

Nolan Bianchi is a freelance writer.