Matthew Stafford has propelled the Rams into the NFC playoff race with some of his best play ever
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Matthew Stafford has been a star quarterback for far too long to really care what a fan, a pundit or even an opponent thinks about how he’s playing.
So even though he’s in one of the most impressive stretches of his 15-year career with his Los Angeles Rams in the thick of the NFC playoff race, Stafford isn’t about to change his stance of politely ignoring any praise or criticism from outside his own locker room.
“If I’m playing good, that means the guys in front of me are blocking, the guys on the outside are getting open and catching it, and we’re running the ball efficiently,” Stafford said Wednesday. “It’s an unbelievable team sport. It takes everybody to do all of it. I’m just trying to make sure that when everything is right around me and my number is called, to go out there and do my job as best as I possibly can.”
Stafford has been doing his job exceptionally well this season, particularly over the past three weeks while throwing 10 touchdown passes with just one interception. He has thrown at least three TD passes in three straight games for the fifth time in his career.
He has passed for 802 yards in those three games against Arizona, Cleveland and Baltimore, completing 63% of his throws with a 111.0 quarterback rating.
But the pure numbers don’t capture the exceptional nature of Stafford’s play down the stretch this season, one year after serious injuries limited him to only nine games in the Rams’ Super Bowl championship defense.
Even while facing the elite defenses fielded by the Browns and Ravens, Stafford has been smart, elusive, anticipatory and generally superb in the pocket while setting up targets Cooper Kupp, rookie Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams for prolific performances.
“He’s played like Matthew,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “He’s a great player, and you can see he’s feeling healthy. He’s doing a great job of distributing the football. Guys are competing hard around him and for him, and he has got great command of what he’s seeing. (The last two opponents) have definitely been two of the upper-echelon defenses. I think he’s played really well when you look at the fourth quarter in Seattle (in Week 11), and then the last 12 quarters when you combine Arizona, Cleveland and Baltimore.”
A year ago, Stafford was already out for the season with a badly bruised spinal cord after taking 29 sacks in a half-season. Los Angeles’ offensive line and pass protection have been exponentially better this year, and Stafford has been sacked only four times in the last five games. He has missed just one game this season, due to a thumb injury.
The 35-year-old Stafford’s talents were on full display in the rain last weekend at Baltimore, where he showed off his incredible array of arm angles — looking as comfortable as Aaron Rodgers with his occasional sidearm throws — and signature misdirections while also demonstrating his love for an occasional risk-it-all throw into a defense.
His best pass might have been a flawless fling through a tiny window to Nacua for a 23-yard gain in the fourth quarter, but he also hit both the star rookie and Super Bowl MVP Kupp with a series of clutch passes against Baltimore’s dominant defense.
Although the Rams lost on a controversial overtime punt return by the Ravens, Stafford had one of the best performances in his three years with Los Angeles.
A week earlier against Cleveland, Stafford did many of the same things in an impressive win. On his most memorable play against the Browns, Stafford stepped up to the line and called an audible before firing a breathtaking long pass to Nacua, who caught it in stride for a 70-yard touchdown.
“That was not going to put any stress on our players, because Matthew has no stress,” Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said of the audible. “He’s calm when he gets that stuff done, and you saw the result with that. It was really cool.”
Stafford isn’t interested in praise or criticism, so he metaphorically shrugs off the past few weeks with the confidence of a quarterback already wearing a Super Bowl ring, but still hungry to chase another.
“I’m always trying to improve, trying to get better week to week,” Stafford said. “Each game is unique, what’s asked of me. My job for that week is always to go out there and play at a high level, but sometimes it’s different. Just proud of the guys.”
NOTES: RT Rob Havenstein (groin) and WR Tutu Atwell (concussion protocol) missed the Rams’ light workout, and McVay is uncertain whether either starter will play this weekend. Both were hurt during last week’s game. … TE Tyler Higbee (neck) was limited, as was LB Michael Hoecht (knee).
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