With a gunslinger like Matthew Stafford, fans have to take the bad with the good

He digs a hole, then digs the team out of it

If you love dramatic finishes, then veteran QB Matthew Stafford is your guy. He is tied for fourth overall and is the leader among active NFL quarterbacks at fourth-quarter comebacks with 38. He managed to add three to his fourth-quarter comeback totals last season. If he maintains that modest pace, he will need just three more NFL seasons to top the list, currently held by QB Tom Brady, with 46 fourth-quarter comebacks.

To say it another way, Matthew Stafford digs a hole, then digs the team out of it.

Stafford is currently tied with retired Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan with 38 4QCs. If he matches his 2024 number of comebacks, he will tie Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger with 41 4QCs. Only Tom Brady (46 4QCs) and Peyton Manning (43 4QCs) have more. And Stafford could top them all with a string of several more NFL seasons.

So many make the argument that an NFL team's win-loss record is not a quarterback stat. But if that is the case, then fourth-quarter comeback victories are not quarterback stats either. Even game-winning drives are more about the fortitude of an offensive line than the skill of an elite quarterback. But it's undeniable that if the game is on the line, almost all NFL fans who are more than casual followers would want Matthew Stafford leading the offense. And for fans who oppose him as time winds down, no quarterback is more feared as time runs out.

Stafford lives for the spotlight and high-pressure stakes. No, not because he loves to be praised. Nor does he seek out attention. He simply loves to rediscover the best version of himself by showing up in the most competitively adverse conditions. And with the Rams' offensive scheme set up by HC Sean McVay, he will always have the coach's trust and best plays backing him up.

In the run to winning Super Bowl LVI, Stafford engineered three game-winning drives and two fourth-quarter comebacks. In those moments, he proved to be the missing link, the guy who this team desperately needed to carry the team to the Winner's Circle. Like it or not, with a gunslinger like Matthew Stafford, fans have to take the bad with the good. While the bad can be frustrating, the good often leads to euphoria.

The Rams and Stafford renewed their vows in 2025. Now, you know why.

As always, thanks so much for reading.

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