Matthew Stafford faces his moment of truth on MNF

Stafford stats shatter records

Matthew Stafford has been with the LA Rams for just one season. But my oh my, what a season this has been. For the Rams Franchise All-Time Career Passing Leaders, Stafford’s lone season has skyrocketed him to 14th-place for career passing yards of 4,886. For passing touchdowns, his 41 touchdowns place him as the 12th-ranked career touchdown tosser for the team. His quarterback rating of 102.9 tops the list for quarterbacks.

How good was his first season with the LA Rams? Well, he only broke the Rams Franchise Single-Season passing record for yards formerly held by Rams great, Kurt Warner. Stafford’s 4,886 yards passed Warner’s former record of 4,830 yards. What about passing touchdowns? Staffords 41 touchdown passes this year tie the record set by Rams quarterback Kurt Warner. Not bad for his debut, eh?

Matthew Stafford did what he needed to do

We expected Stafford to threaten or set new single-season passing records in March 2021, and that is exactly what he’s done. That assertion was not well received by the nay-sayers then, and I have little hope that anyone will come around now. Here is the statement that so many were upset by:

"“If the Rams are to have a real chance at competing in the Super Bowl, the single-season passing record for yards and touchdowns will need to be shattered by Stafford. This is not a luxury nor a bold unrealistic statement. It’s just the basic math that comes with the 17 game season. Stafford was brought in to be better than Jared Goff, and Goff holds second place in the record books.”- per Bret Stuter in  LA Rams Matthew Stafford can shatter team’s passing record"

Here we are, with the Rams trying to compete in Super Bowl LVI, and Stafford has shattered the Rams’ single-season passing records. It was always the only route that these Rams get here.

Rams passing offense carried the team to the playoffs

The LA Rams offense did not get a great running game going until late in the season. The Rams committed so much effort and resources to bring Stafford to this team so that he could pass the ball and win games. Fun Fact: The LA Rams’ 12 wins are the most wins that Matthew Stafford has ever achieved in his NFL career.

To be fair, the Rams’ 12th win came in Week 16, before the final, and the 17th, game of the season. There are a lot of reasons to believe in Matthew Stafford to do well in the Wildcard Round of the NFL Playoffs.

In two games with the Arizona Cardinals this year, he has thrown a combined 49 of 71 for 567 yards, five touchdowns, and one interception. Yes, the Cardinals’ defense will be ready. But Matthew Stafford will be prepared too.

You don’t seek out a moment like this in your life just to wilt under the pressure. A veteran quarterback like Matthew Stafford has watched and wanted a moment like this for most of his NFL career. He knows what to do now. Have confidence in him.

Just look at all of the NFL Football experts who already do.