Rams may see Jimmy Garoppolo as Matthew Stafford’s successor, won’t pursue trade for Colorado Buffaloes football great Shedeur Sanders

Andrew Hughes

Rams may see Jimmy Garoppolo as Matthew Stafford’s successor, won’t pursue trade for Colorado Buffaloes football great Shedeur Sanders image

The Los Angeles Rams are not expected to pursue Colorado Buffaloes football great Shedeur Sanders this offseason, despite a recent suggestion that the franchise trade for the “Grown QB” and make him a Matthew Stafford successor.

Turf Show Times’ Kenneth Arthur believes the Rams are more likely to tab the 33-year-old Jimmy Garoppolo as a long-term replacement.

“So while it is true that the Browns have some decisions to make with four quarterbacks likely competing for three spots, and Sanders potentially being in last place right now, we’ve already found out that NFL teams aren’t as interested in tying themselves to the eighth-place Heisman finisher as the media told us they were pre-draft,” Arthur wrote.

“If the L.A. Rams still need to find a successor to Stafford, and we shouldn’t be convinced that Sean McVay has ruled out Jimmy Garoppolo from being that quarterback for at least a couple of seasons, there’s no reason to believe that the answer is another team’s fifth round quarterback that Les Snead passed on at least four times in the draft.”

Garoppolo is on the wrong side of 30, but with a few years as a backup to rest up from a notable injury history, he may have a decent amount of football left to play.

Sanders would be a good fit for Sean McVay and Mike LaFleur’s offense, though he’ll have to be coached out of the habits he formed playing in Pat Shurmur’s extremely pass-heavy offense at Colorado.

Sanders didn’t have an elite complementary run game, or anything close, at any point during his two seasons with the Buffs. In L.A., he’d have to learn to set up the pass with the run and get used to letting plays develop out of play-action formations, as opposed to gunning for quick reads.

Of course, talking about Sanders’ fit in any offense is a fool’s errand until he proves that NFL teams want him beyond an initial PR boost following the draft.

For all we know, the Cleveland Browns are using the “Grown QB” for nothing more than attention in the preseason and for Dillon Gabriel to build confidence by outdueling a fellow Class of 2025 rookie.

Andrew Hughes

Andrew is a freelance journalist based in Auburn, Alabama, who currently serves as the site expert for Fly War Eagle and Glory Colorado. His work has been featured in The Miami Herald, Bleacher Report and Heavy Sports. Andrew graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in print journalism in 2017 and has been a sports fan since 1993. He has covered the University of Alabama’s pro day and the American Century Championship.