'Excited' Matthew Stafford Knows Detroit 'Will Be Rocking' For His Return

Matthew Stafford is returning to where it all began on Sunday night when the Los Angeles Rams head to Ford Field to take on the Detroit Lions in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs.

Matthew Stafford is the best quarterback in the history of the Detroit Lions franchise, and the stats prove it. 

In 12 years with the franchise, Stafford completed 3,898 of 6,224 passes (62.6 percent) for 45,109 yards and 282 touchdowns - nearly 30,000 more yards and 164 more touchdowns than the next closest player on the list in Bobby Layne.

The one area that Stafford never broke through with Detroit was in the playoffs, where he went 0-3. That said, he rarely had the help he needed to make any sort of stand in the postseason. 

When he did finally have that help after being traded to L.A. in 2021, Stafford took the Rams all the way to the Super Bowl and won it, proving all of the doubters wrong along the way. 

Either way, after more than a decade in the Motor City, Stafford remains one of the most beloved players in Lions franchise history. 

And that love is returned from Stafford in kind, as well, making Sunday night's Wild Card matchup vs. his former team at Ford Field something uniquely special for him on a personal level.

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“The opportunity happens to be in Detroit, which is fun for me on a personal level,” Stafford said Sunday. “We got some other guys on our team that are from the city too, which is really cool. I know it’s gonna be rocking there. Haven’t had a playoff game there in about 30 years or whatever it is, so it will be a great atmosphere, it will be a tough task for us, but definitely excited.”

Stafford has yet to return to Detroit since his trade to Los Angeles. And now, the Lions franchise looks incredibly different than it did while he was leading the team. 

Head coach Dan Campbell led the team to an NFC North title with Jared Goff (the QB the Rams traded in exchange for Stafford) under center, with Detroit finishing with their best regular season record since 1991 - which also happens to be the last time the Lions won a playoff game. 

Wild Card Kickoff Time, Date Revealed For Rams vs. Lions

In other words, the Lions and their fanbase are hungry and will be cheering hard against their former franchise cornerstone. 

But despite everything that will be on the line, Stafford is excited to return to where it all began.

“It will be fun to see some of the people that I haven’t seen in a while, that I know are still around the building,” Stafford said. “And obviously it’ll be a different scenario and won’t be wearing their colors. But still, appreciate so many of the people there who gave me my start in this league and took care of me for 12 years, too.”

Kickoff from Ford Field is set for 5:15 PM PT on Sunday Night Football, with the Rams opening as 3.5-point underdogs.