NFL
By: Edwin Duodu
Since Matthew Stafford had entered the league in 2009, he has been chiefly surrounded by mediocrity his entire career. Now, the former Detroit Lions franchise quarterback is steadily getting acclimated to a new playbook and a new head coach, Sean McVay.
“Bro, this dude’s a bad MF-er. Whatever people say about him, as good as it can be, he’s even better than advertised,” said coach McVay in an interview with Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated.
Stafford is undoubtedly a good player who has been a victim of a bad environment during his tenure in Detroit. However, he now has a better receiving cast, possibly the best running game he’s had in years, and a top-five defense that’s good enough to keep them in tough games. We can also incorporate the man who has the talents to elevate Matthew Stafford’s play and production in Sean McVay.
McVay was able to get the most out of the former first-round pick, Jared Goff, whom general manager Les Snead traded to the Detroit Lions to acquire Stafford. McVay and Stafford must be already building positive chemistry and getting on the same page. Stafford still has enough in the tank to win, and this may be the year that the Los Angeles Rams may win the Super Bowl.
Flashback to the NFC Divisional Round of last year’s playoffs, where the Green Bay Packers outlasted the Rams. Although Goff played relatively well, it ultimately wasn’t enough to compete with the likes of Aaron Rodgers. Los Angeles was horrible on third downs and was outgained by twice as much on total yards for the game. This is where Matthew Stafford comes in.
During his time in Detroit, he put up decent numbers while demonstrating the ability to take care of the football and limit turnovers. He also possesses the ability to still be mobile within the pocket and is arguably a better athlete than Goff, even at this stage of his career. For a team that’s ready to win now, that should bold well for them soon. The only question that the organization faces now is whether or not Stafford will deal with the pressure of succeeding in his first season as the new quarterback.
Los Angeles had dedicated its assets to star players in hopes of accelerating the process of getting back to the Super Bowl. We have seen this with the likes of spending money to keep the offensive core in Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, and Tyler Higbee. Les Snead took the liberty to sign DeSean Jackson in free agency. He also used his first pick in the draft, which came in the second round, on receiver Tutu Atwell. It’s also evident that the Rams aren’t too keen on building through the draft because of their moves in attaining Jalen Ramsey and now Matthew Stafford. Both deals included multiple first-round picks.
Snead has built a well-balanced team that includes exciting pieces on offense and a ferocious defense. Now, it’s all up to Stafford to put the pieces together. The Rams have essentially mortgaged their future in him. The bare minimum for the team is no longer a divisional winner nor a Wild Card playoff team. Anything less than a Super Bowl win would be considered a failure.
Last year, Los Angeles didn’t have a “gunslinger” who could sustain critical drives and make the game-winning play. This year the Rams should be able to achieve their sole goal in sight. They have a two-year window to get this done. If not, the organization will be set back for the next five years, struggling with cap space issues to sign players and making their room for error small when drafting them.
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