'He's Unfathomable!' Matthew Stafford Gets Rave Review From Mike LaFleur
Perhaps the most admirable quality about quarterback Matthew Stafford during parts of 15 NFL seasons with the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams has been his toughness.
Stafford, perhaps to a fault, played with suboptimal supporting casts in Detroit for more than a decade before asking to be traded to a contender. He did win a Super Bowl in his first season with the Rams, but the bill came due for pushing all their chips to the center of the table rather quickly, with Los Angeles going just 5-12 a year ago.
Stafford was limited to just nine games in 2022, dealing with an elbow injury and two stints in concussion protocol. Entering 2023 -- Stafford's age-35 campaign -- there were legitimate questions about whether years of playing through injuries was finally catching up to Stafford.
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Instead, the former No. 1 overall pick has looked rejuvenated in his third season with the Rams. The zip on his fastball is back this season, and so are the Rams as contenders. At 7-7, the Rams are currently in control of the final Wild Card spot in the NFC with three games to go. And first-year offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur credits that, at least in part, to Stafford's toughness.
"In every aspect of his game, physically and mentally," LaFleur said of Stafford's toughness. "He's unfathomable. He's just ... no matter what happens, he can always bounce back from it.
"And he doesn't always have to bounce back, but inevitably it's the NFL and he's playing the hardest position in all of sports so there are going to be some not great things or things he wants back," LaFleur continued. "And he just learns from it within the moment and just keeps swinging."
While former Offensive Player of the Year Cooper Kupp remains Stafford's favorite target, rookie Puka Nacua has over 1,100 receiving yards this season. Running back Kyren Williams has 11 total touchdowns in his second NFL season. Right guard Kevin Dotson -- still only 27 -- has been a revelation after washing out with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
This is a young offense believing in itself. Obviously, LaFleur and coach Sean McVay deserve a ton of credit for that. But so does Stafford.
"It's been awesome. Every week I'm in awe a little bit more from him and I know his teammates are too, especially the ones ... we've got a lot of young guys and so they're kind of seeing it firsthand like I am," LaFleur said of Stafford. "You can see it on their faces. Again, when he's out there, you always feel like you've got a shot in the fight."
Stafford and the Rams are either four or 4.5-point favorites over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football depending upon where you look at. With a win, they would improve to 8-7, as they look to return to the postseason following a disappointing 2022 season.
