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Former Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will go up against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, December 14, and the Lions may be spoilers.
After leading the Los Angeles Rams to a big win over the Detroit Lions, Matthew Stafford had a simple reaction to the drive that sparked the comeback.
The Lions took a 10-point lead with 30 seconds left in the first half, but Stafford was able to attack the unusually passive Lions defense and lead his team to a field-goal drive. That gave the Rams momentum that they continued into the second half, where they outscored the Lions 17-0 in the third quarter en route to a big victory.
The win clinched a playoff berth for the Rams and left Stafford’s former team with a big hill to climb the rest of the season.
Matthew Stafford Speaks on Big Victory
When asked about his team’s big drive late in the first half that ended with a field goal to cut the lead to a touchdown, Stafford summed up the drive — and the game — in five words.
“That was a big one,” Stafford said.
The 37-year-old quarterback, who the Lions shipped to Los Angeles in a blockbuster 2021 trade, said he implored his teammates to squeeze some points out before the half ended and said it came easily against a Lions team that fell into a prevent defense.
“Let’s go steal three (points),” Stafford said.
There had been much anticipation for the game, the third time he played his former team. Stafford led the Rams to a win at home against the Lions in 2021 but fell to Detroit in the playoffs in the 2023 season.
Lions Now Face Difficult Task
Lions head coach Dan Campbell lamented the flip in momentum that came after Stafford’s late second-quarter scoring drive. The Lions punted on both possessions in the third quarter, while Stafford led the Rams on three scoring drives.
“Third quarter was rough on us,” Campbell said. “They got a jump on us that we couldn’t overcome. Nacua had a huge day. We couldn’t slow him down. Stafford played at a really high level, which we knew he would if we couldn’t disrupt him, and more importantly, stop the run. We weren’t able to do that.”
The Lions had a chance to make up ground on the wild-card teams in Sunday’s game but instead left with an even more difficult task the rest of the way. They may need to win out in the final three remaining games to seize a wild-card berth, but quarterback Jared Goff said he believes his team can do it.
“We’re resilient,” Goff said. “We really are, and I expect us to bounce back from this, and we still have plenty of stuff in front of us. We’ve got a great group that can win a championship here.”
The loss left the Lions with a 27% chance of reaching the postseason, The Athletic noted. They would end the season with a 95% chance if they win out, including a 24% chance of winning the NFC North for a third straight year.
Stafford and the Rams became the first team in the NFL to clinch a playoff berth.
Nathan Dougherty is a sports reporter covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins. Previously he wrote for the Rochester Business Journal and served as the assistant editor of athletic trade magazines Coaching Management, Athletic Management and Training & Conditioning. He is based out of Rochester, New York, and loves everything football. More about Nathan Dougherty
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