Matthew Stafford reportedly didn’t want to be traded to the Patriots

It appears the Patriots’ door to acquiring Matthew Stafford was never even open.

When Stafford and the Lions reportedly came to an agreement earlier this month to part ways via trade, the quarterback was open to getting dealt anywhere except to New England, NBC Sports Boston’s Tom Curran reported. Stafford’s reasoning for not wanting to be traded to the Patriots wasn’t reported, but Curran speculated there might be a few reasons why he didn’t want to come to New England.

Curran speculated that the Patriots’ lack of talent on offense plus playing in cold weather late in the season could have been a factor for Stafford to nix a Patriots trade. He also speculated that the “Patriot Way” might not sound enticing to someone with a young family.

Finally, a third reason why Stafford might not have wanted to come to New England is the presence of Matt Patricia. The Patriots brought back the former Lions head coach in an assistant role earlier this offseason. Patricia’s three seasons in Detroit were tumultuous, going 13-29-1 over that span, and the coach reportedly had conflicts with several players.

The Patriots did inquire about the soon-to-be-former Lions quarterback, per multiple reports. The extent of the Patriots’ interest in Stafford is unknown, according to the NFL Network’s Mike Giardi.

Stafford will be traded to the Rams for Jared Goff and two future first-round picks plus a third-round pick when the league year starts, according to multiple reports.