Matthew Stafford Feels Kerby Joseph Plays Wrong Way

Stafford still unhappy with Joseph's hit in last year's playoff matchup.

Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph (31). / David Reginek-Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams' regular season opener on Sunday is sure to be filled with emotion.

It's a playoff rematch from a year ago, when the Lions knocked off the Rams by a single point, 24-23. Additionally, it marks the first regular season game that Matthew Stafford will play back at Ford Field, where he spent the first 12 years of his career playing for the Lions.

He didn't exactly receive a warm welcome in his return during the playoffs, and the Lions fans may once again give a hostile reception when he takes the field on Sunday.

Late in that playoff game, Stafford exchanged choice words with Lions safety Kerby Joseph after the defender delivered a low hit on Rams tight end Tyler Higbee.

Revisiting that moment during a media appearance this week, Stafford didn't mince words about how he felt about how that moment unfolded.

"The deal last year, I don't like it when guys, for one reason or another, take shots at guys that I feel like are not the way the game should be played at that moment," Stafford said. "That was something that had been on tape, in previous weeks he had done that. And you look back in games past our game, the same thing was showing up. I was frustrated for my guy in the moment, and really just protective of the guys that I'm in the huddle with. I care so much about them and want those guys to be able to finish seasons and all that stuff."

Stafford felt the ire of the Lions' fan base in his return last year, as the boo's rained down throughout the Lions' packed crowd. Despite that, he spoke confidently about his feelings toward what he's walking into in the season opener.

“I want to hear all of it,” Stafford said at his press conference. “I want to smell it. I want to feel like it’s football and that’s part of football, especially going to an away game. That stuff just motivates me."

Additional reading

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3.) Aidan Hutchinson: Week 1 Is Always Hard to Prepare For