At this time last year, the Los Angeles Rams were riding high. They were coming off of a Super Bowl victory just a few months prior and made some major moves in free agency that they believed would keep them in contention. Signing wide receiver Allen Robinson would make an already potent offense that much tougher to stop and linebacker Bobby Wagner would upgrade the second level of an already dominant defense.

On paper, everything looked great. But, once the games actually started in September, the cracks in the foundation began showing and things quickly fell apart. The Rams ended up going 5-12 on the season as injuries ruined the campaign.

The only positive to come from a losing season like that is that you will get a high draft pick. But, the Rams didn’t even have that luxury as their first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft was owned by the Detroit Lions from the Matthew Stafford trade.

Speaking of Stafford, his relationship with the franchise has been souring recently. The elbow injury that kept him out of nearly all the offseason practices last year contributed to the team getting off on the wrong foot. He was unable to build chemistry with his teammates, becoming overly reliant on wide receiver Cooper Kupp and failing to incorporate Robinson.

It culminated in Stafford having arguably the least productive season of his career as the Rams went 3-6 in games that he started. To make matters worse, and to no fault of Stafford’s, the Rams signed him to an extension that included $120 million in guarantees over two seasons.

It was something that Los Angeles was attempting to hit the redo button on this offseason. While not outright shopping him on the trade market, the Rams were certainly crossing their fingers that a team would call and make an offer for their starting quarterback.

When no negotiations took place, the Rams reached out to Stafford to renegotiate his contract to move some money around. Colin Cowherd revealed the news on his weekday radio show on FS1 on Monday, adding that Stafford declined these advances.

“I was told by a source I trust that they wanted to re-do his contract,” Cowherd said, via Rams Wire on USA Today. “He wasn’t interested. It limits what they can do and they were frustrated with him.”

It would be fair to assume that the Rams didn’t approach Stafford with a simple restructure in mind. Given his refusal, it is likely they wanted him to take a pay cut in 2023. Stafford is free to make his own decision, but this could be the beginning of the end of their working relationship.

The Rams accomplished the ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl after acquiring Stafford from the Lions in 2021. But, the decisions that they have made since have come back to haunt them. A divorce between Stafford and the Rams seems inevitable, as 2023 could be the last season he spends in Los Angeles.