Stafford Strikes Out Again Against Former Team
Becoming a Villain
You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain. Matthew Stafford is the perfect example. Matthew Stafford went from giving the Detroit Lions hope to giving them obstacles in the end. Stafford was traded to the Rams in 2021 for Jared Goff after playing 12 seasons for the Detroit Lions. He has thrived on the Los Angeles Rams, winning a Super Bowl in 2022. However, he has had issues thriving against his old team. In the NFC Wild-Card game of last season between the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams, Stafford was defeated. When Matthew Stafford got to Ford Field for that game, he was booed. In an interview after that game, he was asked how he felt about the city of Detroit and he replied by saying “I’m happy for the players.” This insinuated that he was not happy for the Detroit Lions fans at all and that he took the booing personally. People had mixed feelings about this. Some people thought that he had a right to resent the fans for booing him after he sacrificed his body for 12 seasons as a Detroit Lion. Others thought that not being happy for the Detroit Lions fans was irrational because his sole purpose during that game was to eliminate the Lions from the playoffs. From this point, it was clear that the way Matthew Stafford felt about Detroit had changed.
The First Matchup
The first matchup took place in the Wild-Card round of last season. The Detroit Lions were the higher seed while the Los Angeles Rams were the lower seed. It was an absolute shootout with both teams moving the ball down the field successfully. According to ESPN, on the Rams side, Puka Nacua got nine receptions for 181 yards and a touchdown. While on the Lions side, Amon-Ra St. Brown got seven receptions for 110 yards. Matthew Stafford went 25 for 36 and threw 367 yards and two touchdowns. Jared Goff went 22 for 27 and threw 277 yards and one touchdown. This game did not feel like a Wild-Card game, it felt like a Championship game. The Lions won 24-23. Matthew Stafford was visibly angry in his press conference after the game. It was obvious that he wanted revenge.
The Second Matchup
The Detroit Lions did not start off flat-footed in this matchup. They started the game by constantly moving the ball down the field. According to ESPN, Jameson Williams had five receptions for 121 receiving yards and one touchdown. David Montgomery had 91 rushing yards and one touchdown. Aidan Hutchinson was constantly applying pressure to Matthew Stafford. The Detroit Lions were leading 17-3. Then suddenly, things started unraveling, and the Lions’ offense started punting due to a lack of productivity. Cooper Kupp started catching balls down the field. Jared Goff threw a costly interception and suddenly the Rams were winning 20-17. With a positive drive in the last couple minutes of the game, the Detroit Lions moved the ball down the field and scored a field goal. The game was going into overtime.
Dan Campbell could not stop smirking when he realized the Detroit Lions won the coin toss because this meant the Detroit Lions would receive. With one touchdown the Detroit Lions could win the game. They marched down the field with David Montgomery, where he had small runs all the way down to the goal line. He won the game when he crossed the goal line for the final time. In the post-game interview, Matthew Stafford said that the Rams’ red zone offense was the reason that the Rams lost, which made sense because a big red zone target, Puka Nacua, was injured early on in the game. The Rams lost again in the matchup.
What This Means
Matthew Stafford is 0-2 against the Detroit Lions in 2024. However, every time he has played them, it has been an unforgettable matchup. It would be ignorant to say that this means that the Detroit Lions are better off without Matthew Stafford. After all, Matthew Stafford was a Super Bowl Champion after leaving the Detroit Lions. However, it is reasonable to say that Matthew Stafford has become a villain of the Detroit Lions. You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain. Matthew Stafford has gone from the hero that saved the Detroit Lions to the villain that stands in their way. As the record depicts, Matthew Stafford is currently losing the battle with his former team, but things could easily change in the future.
