QB Matt Stafford, LAR (2 Viewers)

[Drunken Cowboy]

I think everyone is overestimating the importance of this. First his back has been an issue for at least 6 years.

It's a huge deal and should be discussed more but the fact he's had the issue for 6 years is actually a little comforting, would be worse to me if it was new.

Second, he isn't very good.

For fantasy yes, he's not very good in part because they run so frequently in the red zone.

If you mean this in real life I'm thinking you got tossed off a horse recently and landed on your head. j/k

The drop to Jimmy G isn't a big one.

If Stafford had left them they would have signed Rodgers to be their starter(I wonder if part of him wishes he'd have waited this out?). Jimmy G is option 3 and in Mcvay I trust. He's a good backup but let's not get carried away.

Plus, and this is very significant to me for fantasy value of Rams, if a situation occurred where Jimmy G had to take the reigns for awhile I'd still be nervous as heck for Rams skill position players because I'd be constantly fretting Jimmy G going down. He has seemed awfully brittle lately.

Stafford was never an elite QB. He was at best a slightly above average NFL QB. He is now an old guy who used to be a slightly above average NFL QB

He was recently listed as the 6th best QB in that ESPN poll of scouts/execs. At 37 years old.

I'm going to defer to them, McVay and my eyes on this one.

To add to this he was listed as the 5th overall and last tier one QB in Sando's annual QB tier article.

Article is here, behind a paywall(a super easily multi accessible one fwiw): https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6514160/2025/08/11/nfl-qb-rankings-tiers-2025-jackson-daniels/

I just saw this and normally really like his takes, but he is so wrong on this. Not a perfect metric, but pff ranks for Stafford in reverse order

21
5
26
7
14
9
17
12
9
20
20
10
12
10
He didn't qualify in his 2nd yr
37

An average of 14th best QB after his 2nd year. He has had some peaks. 2023 was a great year, but he has also had some great WR's picking him up.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

What concerns me is he recently had surgery

As far as I know he's only had epidural shots.

Ah. I misread an article. I thought it said he recently had surgery, but it is just an option they may have to discuss. You are correct...he's not had back surgery to this point.

All good and fwiw I did agree with everything you said in your post about pitfalls of back surgery and deal with a lot of similar sounding back issues as you do.

I've always avoided back surgery because a friend of mine, who coincidentally played in the NFL, seemed like a shell of himself after his back surgery and he had the same surgeon who did Troy Aikman's back. Just a super risky thing and hope it does not lead to that for Stafford.

Yeah, same - i had a jacked up L5 for a year-ish, and they tried everything pharmacologically to get it calmed down. Nothing helped. The cortisone epidural was the last try before surgery to trim the disc that was slightly pinched.

Fortunately the epidural did wonders - that was 20+ year ago & it’s been good ever since (knock on wood). But then I’m not getting sacked by an NFL DL every 7 days, sometimes multiple times a day.

I dunno, Stafford seems extremely risky to me, and it has me lowering all Rams in my rankings a little. Chances are that the majority here is correct and this is all just maintenance. But then, they keep saying he’s gonna come back to practice on X day, and X day comes and goes without him practicing. That he threw like 60+ passes one day & was out the next sounds like a setback (no pun intended)

 

[menobrown]

I think everyone is overestimating the importance of this. First his back has been an issue for at least 6 years.

It's a huge deal and should be discussed more but the fact he's had the issue for 6 years is actually a little comforting, would be worse to me if it was new.

Second, he isn't very good.

For fantasy yes, he's not very good in part because they run so frequently in the red zone.

If you mean this in real life I'm thinking you got tossed off a horse recently and landed on your head. j/k

The drop to Jimmy G isn't a big one.

If Stafford had left them they would have signed Rodgers to be their starter(I wonder if part of him wishes he'd have waited this out?). Jimmy G is option 3 and in Mcvay I trust. He's a good backup but let's not get carried away.

Plus, and this is very significant to me for fantasy value of Rams, if a situation occurred where Jimmy G had to take the reigns for awhile I'd still be nervous as heck for Rams skill position players because I'd be constantly fretting Jimmy G going down. He has seemed awfully brittle lately.

Stafford was never an elite QB. He was at best a slightly above average NFL QB. He is now an old guy who used to be a slightly above average NFL QB

He was recently listed as the 6th best QB in that ESPN poll of scouts/execs. At 37 years old.

I'm going to defer to them, McVay and my eyes on this one.

To add to this he was listed as the 5th overall and last tier one QB in Sando's annual QB tier article.

Article is here, behind a paywall(a super easily multi accessible one fwiw): https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6514160/2025/08/11/nfl-qb-rankings-tiers-2025-jackson-daniels/

I just saw this and normally really like his takes, but he is so wrong on this. Not a perfect metric, but pff ranks for Stafford in reverse order

21
5
26
7
14
9
17
12
9
20
20
10
12
10
He didn't qualify in his 2nd yr
37

An average of 14th best QB after his 2nd year. He has had some peaks. 2023 was a great year, but he has also had some great WR's picking him up.

It's not his takes, it's a poll of NFL coaches and executives and with all due respect that's a whole lot weighter then PFF.

 

[Joe Bryant]

Sarah Barshop

https://x.com/sarahbarshop/status/1955308989178401175

Matthew Stafford is not out with the other quarterbacks to start practice

Does not mean he won't be out later though.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

It's not so much Stafford himself and his FF impact but all the skill players he delivers the ball to be it turning around or dropping back
Jimmy G is there as a safety precaution, all QBs seem to find themselves working with McVay
It's a mystery but Stafford knows the playbook better than anyone, doesn't need a lot of reps to function most Sundays

 

[scothawk]

Sarah Barshop

https://x.com/sarahbarshop/status/1955308989178401175

Matthew Stafford is not out with the other quarterbacks to start practice

Does not mean he won't be out later though.

You mean like this:

Stafford, M QB OUT (back)

 

[Deranged Hermit]

It's not so much Stafford himself and his FF impact but all the skill players he delivers the ball to be it turning around or dropping back
Jimmy G is there as a safety precaution, all QBs seem to find themselves working with McVay
It's a mystery but Stafford knows the playbook better than anyone, doesn't need a lot of reps to function most Sundays

Exactly. People are going to be making decisions between Puka and other WR like St Brown, Nabers, BTJ, Nico, etc. Without Stafford, Puka goes to the back of that group.

 

[TheDirtyWord]

I saw someone say this has CMC 2024 vibes...couldn't agree more.

 

[Mitchie]

I saw someone say this has CMC 2024 vibes...couldn't agree more.

Why? not really seeing many similarities.

 

[Mitchie]

What concerns me is he recently had surgery. Back surgery is hit or miss. Even with technological advancements, it's not a cure all for back issues. And usually requires several throughout your life. The epidural is the same efficacy. It can make you feel great for a few days, a couple weeks, sometimes longer...but there is a reason why they'll give you up to about 3 shots before suggesting surgery. I'm on my 3rd shot and while I feel a lot better than before, my back still locks up and I still get the occasional dead/wet leg sensation. I don't have to worry about 300+ lb lineman unloading on me...just walking and doing yard work tightens up my back. I also do not have access to the top notch medical staff or machinery that Stafford has. I'm just saying, I got a bad feeling for him. I've put off surgery because I don't want hardware in my back...I can deal with the discomfort most of the time (thank goodness for edibles and alcohol). Stafford is still having issues even after recently getting surgery AND an epidural. From my experience, I just feel like he's gonna miss time due to his back. Maybe I'm wrong. Trying to be cautiously optimistic.

lol, you just said he's done.

 

[TheDirtyWord]

I saw someone say this has CMC 2024 vibes...couldn't agree more.

Why? not really seeing many similarities.

I disagree…although maybe you’re being facetious

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey was listed as limited for practice Thursday with a calf/Achilles injury that sidelined him through training camp and the preseason.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters before practice that the Achilles designation was nothing new and related to the calf strain he suffered in early August at training camp. He did not indicate any concern about McCaffrey's availability for Monday's season opener against the New York Jets.

McCaffrey and the 49ers downplayed the injury as minor throughout training camp. McCaffrey said on Aug. 9 that his absence from practice was "cautionary" and that if the 49ers had a game that day, he'd be ready to play.

 

[Faust]

Matthew Stafford to work out with Rams on Saturday

 

[elguapo07]

If Staff can’t go is there anything to see with Jimmy G in this offense? He did ok in SF with Shanny. Can he be this years Sam Darnold?

 

[King of the Jungle]

If Staff can’t go is there anything to see with Jimmy G in this offense? He did ok in SF with Shanny. Can he be this years Sam Darnold?

I think he can be adequate, but comes with a history of injury. Stetson Bennett has appeared to make some strides this year as well.

 

[travdogg]

If Staff can’t go is there anything to see with Jimmy G in this offense? He did ok in SF with Shanny. Can he be this years Sam Darnold?

I'd honestly expect it to only be a slight downgrade. Stafford is vastly overrated in my opinion. Its not 2021 anymore.

Possibly a hot take, but I think the Rams got extremely lucky last season. This isn't a Super Bowl contender, in fact, whether Stafford is good all season or not, I don't think this is necessarily a playoff team.

I think fantasy wise, Jimmy G can absolutely keep Nacua and Adams pretty close to what Stafford can.

 

[scothawk]

Matthew Stafford to work out with Rams on Saturday

On one hand he threw 68 passes and on the other he couldn't practice 2 days later. Then the coach is vague about the surgery "conversations".

This isn't looking good.

Was he coming back next year?

 

[rockaction]

If Staff can’t go is there anything to see with Jimmy G in this offense? He did ok in SF with Shanny. Can he be this years Sam Darnold?

I'd honestly expect it to only be a slight downgrade. Stafford is vastly overrated in my opinion. Its not 2021 anymore.

Possibly a hot take, but I think the Rams got extremely lucky last season. This isn't a Super Bowl contender, in fact, whether Stafford is good all season or not, I don't think this is necessarily a playoff team.

I think fantasy wise, Jimmy G can absolutely keep Nacua and Adams pretty close to what Stafford can.

No. I think you’re just totally wrong. Stafford led the Rams to within ten yards of taking the Eagles to OT. Last we saw of Jimmy he was taking the gas with the Raiders and playing super low-volume passing games with Kyle Shanahan who wouldn’t open up anything or let him throw (or make Captain Checkdown throw). He had a good day or two with Davante Adams but Adams saw and spoke his *** out of town. Not good.

 

[travdogg]

If Staff can’t go is there anything to see with Jimmy G in this offense? He did ok in SF with Shanny. Can he be this years Sam Darnold?

I'd honestly expect it to only be a slight downgrade. Stafford is vastly overrated in my opinion. Its not 2021 anymore.

Possibly a hot take, but I think the Rams got extremely lucky last season. This isn't a Super Bowl contender, in fact, whether Stafford is good all season or not, I don't think this is necessarily a playoff team.

I think fantasy wise, Jimmy G can absolutely keep Nacua and Adams pretty close to what Stafford can.

No. I think you’re just totally wrong. Stafford led the Rams to within ten yards of taking the Eagles to OT. Last we saw of Jimmy he was taking the gas with the Raiders and playing super low-volume passing games with Kyle Shanahan who wouldn’t open up anything or let him throw (or make Captain Checkdown throw). He had a good day or two with Davante Adams but Adams saw and spoke his *** out of town. Not good.

That game is a great example of what I'm talking about, when it comes to the Rams being extremely lucky last season. Stafford wasn't good in that game, he had 1 turnover and was lucky he didn't have 6. The big plays, the accuracy, and the escape ability have all noticeably declined for Stafford since 2022. I think he still gets treated like he's the same player he was in 2021, and he's far removed from that guy to me. Honestly, this current version of Stafford isn't worth a 1st round pick, and I think he's not as good as 2021 Goff was, or current Goff for that matter.

I'm not arguing Jimmy G would be better (or even as good) just that the dropoff wouldn't be huge. The offense might be more checkdown heavy (in that respect, It'd be more like having Goff again, but a bit worse) but the offense wouldn't fall apart at all. McVay is FAR too good for that to happen, and Jimmy G is competent enough.

Also, the last we saw of Jimmy G, he was almost leading the Rams backups to a win over Seattle's starters. He went 27-41 for 334, 2 TD and 1 INT. Again, not arguing he'd be as good as Stafford, but I think he'd be certainly good enough to keep Puka and Adams going, as he did that with Whittington and Robinson.

ETA: If Stafford were suddenly ruled out for the season, I'd still draft both Puka and Adams among the top-25 WRs. Puka would still be a top-10 guy for me. I think Jimmy G with McVay is every bit as good as whatever the Giants trot out (Wilson for now) with Daboll for example.

 

[menobrown]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

That's only if Atlanta wants to give up on their Penix insurance.

 

[menobrown]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

That's only if Atlanta wants to give up on their Penix insurance.

Agree, that’s what I said check in on his price.

But I think Atlanta has wanted to deal him all off-season if they could find a taker, they just never could and getting back Stetson Bennett in a trade to back up Penix makes a lot of sense as one way this could go.

 

[Faust]

Rams QB Matthew Stafford (back) participates in practice for first time since start of training camp

 

[zeeshan2]

McVay on Stafford after QB completes full week of practice: “From what I see, there’s no restrictions."

 

[Faust]

Rams' Matthew Stafford says he's doing 'everything under the sun' to address back issue

 

[Faust]

Matthew Stafford and the Rams Are in a Race Against Time

 

[pinkstapler]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

That's only if Atlanta wants to give up on their Penix insurance.

Agree, that’s what I said check in on his price.

But I think Atlanta has wanted to deal him all off-season if they could find a taker, they just never could and getting back Stetson Bennett in a trade to back up Penix makes a lot of sense as one way this could go.

Even if the price was a 7th round pick; not sure the Rams want to take on a $40mil cap hit for this year, and even if they cut him after this year, it's another $45mil in dead cap for 2026. Cousins contract is... woof.... Very Expensive risk for a 37 year old who looked horrid last year after the injury. Maybe he wasn't fully recovered. Or maybe he will never be fully recovered at this point in his career.

 

[menobrown]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

That's only if Atlanta wants to give up on their Penix insurance.

Agree, that’s what I said check in on his price.

But I think Atlanta has wanted to deal him all off-season if they could find a taker, they just never could and getting back Stetson Bennett in a trade to back up Penix makes a lot of sense as one way this could go.

Even if the price was a 7th round pick; not sure the Rams want to take on a $40mil cap hit for this year, and even if they cut him after this year, it's another $45mil in dead cap for 2026. Cousins contract is... woof.... Very Expensive risk for a 37 year old who looked horrid last year after the injury. Maybe he wasn't fully recovered. Or maybe he will never be fully recovered at this point in his career.

I've never thought any team that might have traded for Cousins would be picking up his whole salary, have thought ATL would need to eat some of that to move him.

Saying that his cap hit to any acquiring team without Atlanta picking up any of his pay would have "only" been $27.5m for this year. Cousins has a higher cap hit to Atlanta but that's due to bonus that has already been paid out.

Cousins has a $10m guaranteed roster bonus payment for 2026. I'm not sure if that's been paid yet, don't think so. If not that's the only cap hit or guarantees any acquiring team would inherit.

So to recap if any team acquired Cousins and ATL picked up $0 of his pay they'd take on $27.5m for this year and might be on $10M next year. Which again, I don't think anyone would take him and put themselves on the hook for $37.5M unless Atlanta ate some money.

 

[pinkstapler]

If the news on Stafford does not improve I think the Rams might check in on Cousins price.

That's only if Atlanta wants to give up on their Penix insurance.

Agree, that’s what I said check in on his price.

But I think Atlanta has wanted to deal him all off-season if they could find a taker, they just never could and getting back Stetson Bennett in a trade to back up Penix makes a lot of sense as one way this could go.

Even if the price was a 7th round pick; not sure the Rams want to take on a $40mil cap hit for this year, and even if they cut him after this year, it's another $45mil in dead cap for 2026. Cousins contract is... woof.... Very Expensive risk for a 37 year old who looked horrid last year after the injury. Maybe he wasn't fully recovered. Or maybe he will never be fully recovered at this point in his career.

I've never thought any team that might have traded for Cousins would be picking up his whole salary, have thought ATL would need to eat some of that to move him.

Saying that his cap hit to any acquiring team without Atlanta picking up any of his pay would have "only" been $27.5m for this year. Cousins has a higher cap hit to Atlanta but that's due to bonus that has already been paid out.

Cousins has a $10m guaranteed roster bonus payment for 2026. I'm not sure if that's been paid yet, don't think so. If not that's the only cap hit or guarantees any acquiring team would inherit.

So to recap if any team acquired Cousins and ATL picked up $0 of his pay they'd take on $27.5m for this year and might be on $10M next year. Which again, I don't think anyone would take him and put themselves on the hook for $37.5M unless Atlanta ate some money.

The first two lines make sense to me. Not sure how they wouldn't be absorbing the 2026 dead cap hit though if they cut him after this year, unless I'm reading SportTrac wrong. Or just not understanding how traded contracts work.

Edit: got it. Since it was guaranteed at signing, and ATL already paid that, they'd be the ones taking that hit if they traded him.

 

[Faust]

Adam Schefter
Rams HC Sean McVay told reporters that QB Matthew Stafford, who missed much of camp with a back injury, is expected to start Sunday’s opener against the Texans.

https://x.com/adamschefter/status/1962621839877763421?s=61

 

[Faust]

Is Stafford up to the challenge of Year 17?

 

[Faust]

Rams' Matthew Stafford: Focus on Texans, not on ailing back

 

[darksideofoz]

glad he's putting that behind him.

but seriously, my fairly stacked keeper team depends on a fully functioning Rams offense. hoping this won't affect things too much.

 

[VikingFrog]

glad he's putting that behind him.

but seriously, my fairly stacked keeper team depends on a fully functioning Rams offense. hoping this won't affect things too much.

I somehow drafted Nucua and Adams in auction last night. lol.

I’m fully invested in Stafford’s backiotomy.

 

[Faust]

Rams' Matthew Stafford becomes 10th player to pass for 60,000 career yards

 

[Faust]

The 33rd Team
Matthew Stafford on attempts of 15+ air yards in Week 2:

5 of 6
137 yards
1 TD
1.96 EPA per dropback
158.3 rating

He can still sling it in Year 17

https://x.com/the33rdteamfb/status/1967336540075659575?s=61

 

[C-Bound]

Savage.

 

[Faust]

Rams QB Matthew Stafford surpasses Matt Ryan for ninth all time with 382nd career touchdown pass

 

[Faust]

Next Gen Stats
Matthew Stafford completed three of his four deep pass attempts (20+ air yards) for 142 yards and a touchdown in Week 4, including an 88-yard TD to Tutu Atwell with 1:44 left in the fourth quarter.

Stafford now leads the NFL with 311 deep passing yards.

#INDvsLAR | #RamsHouse

https://x.com/nextgenstats/status/1972450228109455455?s=61

 

[Harjiran]

Way underrated.

 

[Faust]

JPA
Matthew Stafford tonight:

- 30/47
- 389 passing yards
- 3 passing touchdowns

Playing at an MVP level still.

https://x.com/jasrifootball/status/1973957433761673489?s=61

Quincy Avery
Matt Stafford is really amazing man. Arm angles, trajectories, eye manipulation. Really has all the things.

https://x.com/quincyavery/status/1973940077295501421?s=61

 

[Faust]

Ari Meirov
Most receiving yards in a season in NFL history:

1) Calvin Johnson — 1,964 (in 2012)

2) Cooper Kupp — 1,947 (in 2021)

Through 5 games, Puka Nacua is on pace for an NFL record 1,999 receiving yards.

The QB for all three...? Matthew Stafford.

https://x.com/mysportsupdate/status/1974172346077372563?s=61

 

[rockaction]

Damn, I just came in to post that Johnson, Kupp, Nacua thing.

 

[Faust]

Is this the season Matthew Stafford finally wins his first NFL passing title?

 

[Faust]

Next Gen Stats
Matthew Stafford faced a season-high 55.9% blitz rate against the Jaguars and threw all five of his touchdowns against the blitz.

Stafford tied Patrick Mahomes and Baker Mayfield for the most TD passes against the blitz in any game since 2016.

#LARvsJAX | #RamsHouse

https://x.com/nextgenstats/status/1979959460035740157?s=61

 

[Faust]

Rams' Matthew Stafford throws five TD passes in London rout of Jags: 'Do I get a sword or something?'