Matthew Stafford prepares for an LA Super Bowl but Detroit is still on his mind

Speaking of compelling Super Bowl LVI angles, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford finds himself in the big game just one year after he asked the Detroit Lions, who won their last NFL championship nine years before there even was a Super Bowl, to trade him.

As he pointed out Monday, though, “Just because I came here doesn’t mean we were going to get to this point.”

For one, several teams were interested in obtaining Stafford, who had thrown for more than 45,000 yards and 282 touchdowns in 12 tough seasons in Detroit – but had not won a playoff game because his teammates not nicknamed “Megatron” were not so good. (“Megatron” would be Calvin Johnson, the Hall of Fame wide receiver.)

Sheila Ford Hamp, the Lions’ principal owner, was not so sure she wanted to get rid of Stafford either, considering that she’d sacked the general manager and coach two months earlier. She said she was a “huge Matthew fan.” So were the team and their long-suffering fans.

Stafford, selected with the No 1 overall pick in 2009, the year after the Lions finished 0-16, was no fresh talent – no guaranteed success in LA. He’d played every game over eight full seasons, often hurt, but missed the second half of the 2019 season with fractured bones in his back.

Besides, the Lions were not going to just give him away. But the Rams offered a bounty in return: Jared Goff, their 27-year-old starting quarterback, plus, of larger importance, first-round draft choices in 2022 and 2023 and a third-round draft choice in 2021.

Hamp OK’d the deal because, as she told the Detroit Free Press in October: “We want people to be here that want to be here and that want to play for us.” She understood why Stafford did not want to start over with another head coach. She saw everyone could benefit.

Stafford had two years left on his contract, and he has acknowledged that the Lions could have said, Tough luck, pal. You are in this with the rest of us. The Lions might not win many games, but they made the deal, and for more than football reasons.

“I mean, I think we’re in two different phases, and I think that’s what he had recognized,” the Lions’ new general manager, Brad Holmes, said at the Senior Bowl last week, referring to the Lions and Stafford. “I respected his request, and we did the best thing for our organization, the best thing for him.”

Stafford grew up in Dallas and went to the University of Georgia, where he met his wife, Kelly. But Detroit became a special place for the Staffords. All four of their daughters were born there. Kelly had surgery there in 2019 to remove a brain tumor. He became involved with the community, participating in charities, becoming a voice.

“His stand over the summer during the George Floyd protests revealed a man who’s fully morphed from taking things seriously to doing things seriously,” Mitch Albom, the Detroit Free Press sports columnist, wrote after Stafford asked to be traded.

The Lions went winless in their first 11 games under Dan Campbell, the new coach, but Goff played much better at the end of the season, winning three of his last four starts. They have two first-round picks in 2022, the No 2 overall pick and either the No 31 or No 32 pick – and two more first-round picks in 2023. They can say they have benefited from trading Stafford.

“All we can do is stay in the present, for where we’re at right now,” Holmes said. “The Rams, congrats to them. It’s an accomplishment to host a big game in their own city. But the present is the reality, and they’re headed to the Super Bowl, and we’re coaching the Senior Bowl,” an all-star game for top college prospects.

The Rams don’t offer the cuddly appeal of their Super Bowl opponents, the Cincinnati Bengals, who almost magically have rocketed from a 2-14 finish two years ago to make their first Super Bowl appearance in 33 years under their cool 25-year-old QB, Joe Burrow.

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The “Who Dey?” Bengals have a 38-year-old head coach, Zac Taylor, who had to get a vote of confidence a year ago from Mike Brown, the owner, after a 4-11-1 season. Meanwhile, the Rams’ 36-year-old head coach, Sean McVay, is in his second Super Bowl in four seasons. The Rams will also be playing in their own stadium. No wonder they are a four-point favorite.

There have been hiccups this season. The Rams won seven of their first eight games, but they lost three in a row in November. They then won five games in a row, but lost to the San Francisco 49ers for the second time this season in their finale.

But the Rams have won three playoff games – the first playoff victories of Stafford’s career – including a victory in the NFC Championship Game over the 49ers. The mid-season additions of veteran linebacker Von Miller and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr have helped.

Of the Detroit fans, Stafford said on Monday that he would “always have a soft spot in my heart and will appreciate them.” He seemed to be aware that many people in Detroit are rooting for the Rams to win the Super Bowl because he plays for them. He appreciates that.

“I think we all are playing for not only the guys in this locker room, but those who helped us get to this position,” Stafford. “There’s so many people in Detroit, important people in my life, that have helped me get here.”

Campbell understands why Stafford asked for a trade, adding that there are no hard feelings. The Lions will have to rebuild again, this time without Stafford, for their first Super Bowl appearance. But they granted him the opportunity to try something new, because they knew he’d benefit, too.