This wild card weekend is about both Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford.
Both men are inextricably linked; the quarterbacks are former first-round picks who have only played for two teams: the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams.
Stafford is a revered figure in Detroit. He was drafted in 2009 after their 0-16 season and played 165 games at Ford Field, throwing for 45,109 yards, 282 touchdowns, and 144 interceptions in 12 seasons.
However, the Lions have continuously failed to create a squad around their franchise quarterback, who has a rocket arm and remarkable toughness. During his rookie season, he separated his shoulder and then threw the game-winning touchdown the following play.
That marked his first game-winning drive and fourth-quarter comeback of his career; he leads active quarterbacks in both categories with 44 and 35.
Faced with yet another rebuild, a weary Stafford requested a trade at the end of the 2020 season, and the Rams came calling.
When he won Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles, many Lions fans cheered.
Stafford has already faced Detroit (the Rams won 28-19 at SoFi Stadium in October 2021), but this is his first visit to Ford Field. Motor City will be raging.
After all, they’ve waited 30 years. Detroit outplayed but fell to Green Bay at the Pontiac Silverdome.
‘I don’t expect any (kind of reception) to be honest with you,’ Stafford stated. ‘I understand how much the people and city of Detroit meant to me during my career, as well as to my family.
‘But, at the same time, I’m not new to the issue, and I’m aware that I’m the bad guy going to town. I am on the other team, and they do not want me to succeed.
I’m excited to play anyone, wherever in the playoffs. We were a team that no one gave us a chance at the start of the season to be in the position we are now.
Following their Super Bowl victory, the Rams fell to 5-12 due to a slew of injuries, including Stafford, who appeared in only nine games last season.
However, with the 35-year-old back to full health and strong contributions from rookies Puka Nakua and defensive tackle Kobie Turner, as well as third-year receiver Tutu Atwell and second-year running back Kyren Williams, the Rams are a dangerous squad, having won seven of their previous eight games. Meanwhile, Goff’s prize for leading Detroit to a 12-5 record and its first division title since 1993 is to face the head coach who abruptly fired him.
As the Rams returned to Los Angeles in 2016, they traded up for Goff, the No. 1 overall pick from the University of California.
On paper, his time in Los Angeles was not without accomplishments: he won two NFC West division crowns, an NFC Championship, and guided the Rams to defeat in Super Bowl LIII in his third season.
In 2019, he signed a four-year, $134 million contract extension, but the laser-focused McVay was having trouble connecting with his laid-back, erratic quarterback, who had a tendency to throw turnovers.
McVay confronted Goff both privately and publicly, telling reporters: ‘Our quarterback has to take better care of the football,’ following the 49ers’ upset on November 29, 2020.
When Goff broke his thumb three games later, the gloves came off. McVay benched Goff in favor of undrafted quarterback John Wolford. Just two weeks after losing to the Packers in the divisional playoffs, the Rams decided to transfer Goff to Detroit.
‘I think it’ll never leave me, which I think is a wonderful thing,’ Goff, 29, said on Wednesday.
‘Obviously, we had our issues there at the end, but he’s a tremendous coach,’ he said of McVay. ‘He’s someone who taught me a lot.
‘I really want to win a playoff game for this city since we haven’t had one in a long time. For the first time in a long time, we have a home playoff game, which is far more important to me personally.
McVay went on to say, ‘I’ll never run away from past mistakes.
‘He deserved better than the way things played out. I’ll acknowledge it. I believe he is also aware of this. And my appreciation for him grows as time passes.
The transaction was unique in that it benefited both parties.
While the Rams won the Super Bowl in Stafford’s first season, the Lions acquired a 2021 third-round pick and first-round picks in 2022 and 2023. The draft capital was wisely spent, with defensive back Ifeatu Melifonwu, receiver Jameson Williams, running back Jahmyr Gibbs, and tight end Sam LaPorta joining the team.
Goff came to Detroit as a bridge quarterback, but he has developed into a capable starter, throwing for 4,575 yards this season — the second-most yards in the NFL — while completing 67.3% of throws.
