Matthew Stafford
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Former Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is still making history with the Los Angeles Rams, even late in his career.
The Detroit Lions had a thrilling game against Ben Johnson and the Chicago Bears on Sunday, September 14, with the Lions beating out the Chicago Bears in a 52-21 final score. It was a match made in football heaven for the Lions, and having such a successful game against their former offensive coordinator had to feel good.
But, the Lions weren’t the only ones celebrating on Sunday. Any longtime Lions follower knows the name Matthew Stafford very well. He was the franchise quarterback for the Detroit Lions for more than a decade, before getting traded to the Los Angeles Rams in a deal that brought current Lions quarterback Jared Goff to Detroit. As soon as Stafford got to Los Angeles, he scored them a championship win, which felt a little bad for many Lions followers, but the Lions have their own reasons to celebrate lately.
Stafford had a tough offseason and struggled with an injury that kept him out of practice for the majority of the offseason. But, he’s been knocking things out of the park with the Rams in the regular season and just made history with the team.
Ex-Lions Quarterback Matthew Stafford Notches a Big Win
On Sunday, September 14, Stafford and the Rams went up against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium and won, 33-19. Going into the game, Stafford had 368 career passing touchdowns and 96 during his period with the Rams. After connecting with tight end Davis Allen and wide receiver Davante Adams in the end zone, he hit some historic numbers.
According to the Rams Wire, “Stafford’s first touchdown, an 8-yard pass to Allen, tied him with Rams legend Bob Waterfield for the seventh-most passing touchdowns in team history. The second touchdown, a 16-yard strike to Adams, put him all alone at No. 7 with 98 passing touchdowns in a Rams jersey.”
Stafford’s contract with the Los Angeles Rams is a short one, so he pretty much just has to get through the year. The former Lions player signed a two-year, $84 million contract with the team during the offseason, including $80 million guaranteed and an average annual salary of $40.2 million.
A New Rivalry With Detroit Lions’ Jared Goff
Goff and Stafford seem friendly, and Goff’s wife has even appeared on Stafford’s wife Kelly’s podcast. But, there’s a little competition brewing between these two.
According to the Rams Wire, Stafford is now four touchdowns behind Kurt Warner and nine behind Jared Goff. “He could hit both those marks in the coming weeks and move himself further up the Rams’ history books,” Mike Masala of the Rams Wire notes
Masala adds, “For his career, Stafford needs just one passing touchdown to tie 2008 first-overall pick Matt Ryan (381) for the ninth-most in NFL history. He should accomplish that feat this week against the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field.”
As this point, Stafford has been gone from the Lions years, and Detroit’s focus is really on the current team and, most recently, how fantastic the Motor City performed against the Windy City last weekend. But, it’s still interesting to see what’s going on in Stafford’s world, especially if it impacts the Lions in the postseason.