When former team quarterback Matthew Stafford was greeted with jeers on January 14 at Ford Field, some Detroit Lions fans expressed their feelings toward him. However, Stafford tried his best to keep his feelings about the Lions and Los Angeles Rams playoff game to himself after it ended.
Stafford made an irrelevant remark in response to a question about whether he was pleased with Detroit’s first playoff victory in thirty-two years during his postgame press conference.
“I’m happy for the players.” Stafford told the press, “I’m delighted for those guys.”
On Wild Card weekend, the Lions prevailed 24-23 over the Rams. Detroit had not won a playoff game since January 1992, thanks to this victory.
QB Matthew Stafford praises Jared Goff of the Lions
Stafford didn’t seem to want to respond to any questions, even after the painful postseason loss, except one about his feelings toward Lions fans.
In his post-match press conference, Stafford mentioned that one of the Lions players he was pleased for was Jared Goff, the quarterback who took his place in Detroit.
“Today, he guided them to victory. Regarding Goff, Stafford expressed his happiness. He performed admirably, in my opinion, today. He is in charge of an offense that is currently playing at a very high clip.
“[Lions supporters] ought to be happy for him. They ought to be applauding him.”
Stafford was questioned regarding the booing he had received from Lions fans prior to the game near the end of his press conference. One could reasonably assume that Stafford refrained from discussing his feelings toward Detroit fans in order to avoid drawing jeers from the crowd.
However, Stafford expressed that he didn’t think the jeers were all that surprising.
It’s a postseason match. “It’s not surprising that they were enthusiastic about supporting their team,” Stafford remarked. “I don’t think I should be too concerned about what people in the stands think of me personally.”
Lions Fans Boo Matthew Stafford
Even though the trade involving Stafford and Goff happened three years prior, Stafford’s return to Ford Field as the starting quarterback of the other team was unprecedented during the Wild Card game.
The 2021 season saw the Lions and Rams’ final game together. In Week 7, Stafford and the Rams defeated his old team in Los Angeles, 28-19.
After the Lions selected Stafford as the first overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft, he played for the team for 12 years. The Lions were 0-16 the season before the quarterback was traded in.
With Stafford at the center, they made it to the playoffs three years later.
Since the beginning of the Super Bowl era, Stafford has been among Detroit’s best players. He passed for more passing touchdowns and passing yards with the Lions than any other quarterback in team history.
It’s surprising that so many Lions fans jeered Stafford before the playoff game, given that history. On January 14, NFL analysts on social media didn’t seem to be anticipating the boo birds for the former Lions signal caller.
“And then, to loud jeers, Matthew Stafford entered the field.”
In Detroit, Stafford deserves to be honored, but it wasn’t appropriate to do so right before a playoff game. When the Rams play in Ford Field again in the 2024 regular season, maybe Lions fans will be kinder to Stafford.
Stafford had a 62.6% completion percentage, 45,109 passing yards, and 282 touchdowns in his 12 seasons with the Lions. In the regular season, he had a record of 74-90-1.
Stafford was 0-3 with Detroit in the postseason. With the Rams, he is currently 4-1 in the postseason.