The Los Angeles Rams may make one of the biggest moves of the NFL offseason by trading away former first-overall pick Jared Goff to land Matthew Stafford.
Stafford, who has put up huge numbers throughout his career, struggled to lead the Detroit Lions to succeed, although it's hard to blame him for that.
He got the opportunity to start over with a championship-caliber team in Los Angeles and was expected to be a huge upgrade at the quarterback position for Sean McVay's team.
Stafford started the season as an early MVP candidate, proving that the Lions failed him all these years.
However, he's vastly regressed over the past couple of weeks, raising doubts about his ability to lead theiroffense:
“Sometimes those things happen,” Stafford told the press, per The Rams Wire. “I’ve got a ton of trust in all those guys. I see those guys, the way they work, the way they go about their business week in and week out. I can definitely do a better job of giving them the ball in a better spot so they don’t have to work as hard to make those catches, so I’ll make sure I’m doing my part to try and be better for those guys and give them better opportunities.”
LeBron James wasn't having any of the disrespect.
That's why his colleague and lifelong rival Aaron Rodgers didn't hesitate to shut down that narrative.
Rodgers said that Stafford is one of the best players in the league and that he's actually been pretty good this season:
“I'm not here for any Matthew Stafford slander. Those are trash comments. I’m a huge Stafford fan and have been for a long time,” Rodgers said on his latest appearance on the Pat McAfee Show. “We played against him for so many years. He’s one of the most gifted throwers in football, definitely of my generation. I’m a fan. He’s a tough dude and has played through some crazy injuries. I’m a big fan and he’s having a really nice season."
That's not the first time that Rodgers has high praise for Stafford's talents.
He even said that he's one of the most underrated players in the league and added that he's been doing those hype no-look passes long before Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes:
"I must say this. You know, a guy who probably doesn't get anywhere near the credit for doing s--t like that all the time, he wears No. 9 and plays in Detroit," Rodgers said back then. "That dude, what he does with the ball, it's impressive. It's really, really impressive."
The Rams compromised their entire future for a shot to win the Super Bowl right away.
They added Stafford, Von Miller, and more recently Odell Beckham Jr. to a team that was already stacked on both sides of the field.
Stafford has had a decent season overall, throwing for 3,014 yards with 24 touchdowns and 8 interceptions while completing 67.7% of his passes.
Then again, they need to find more consistency and a way to get back into games when they trail in the first half.
It's do-or-die time in Los Angeles.
