Heading into the offseason, the Detroit Lions will have a plethora of important decisions to make, including hiring a GM, a head coach, and deciding on what they want to do with Matthew Stafford.
Plenty of “experts” have weighed in saying it is time for the Lions to move on from Stafford as he is part of the problem rather than part of the solution. But I am here to tell you a couple of things. 1) Matthew Stafford is absolutely NOT part of the problem with the Detroit Lions and 2) He will be the Lions quarterback in 2021 AND beyond.
Stafford is still one of the most physically gifted quarterbacks in the NFL and he is their best bet to finally get to the promised land over the next 5 years or so if he has a solid supporting cast on offense and defense.
Selecting a quarterback with their first pick in the 2021 NFL Draft is a problem for a couple of reasons. First of all, hitting on a QB in the draft is a crapshoot at best. Too many talking heads are begging for the Lions to draft a quarterback as if it is a lock that the pick will change the franchise for the better.
That is a lie.
Daniel Jones, Dwayne Haskins, Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Mitchell Trubisky, Paxton Lynch, Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, and Teddy Bridgewater are all QBs who were selected in the first round since 2015 and we all know how that has worked out so far. Just because the Lions draft a quarterback with a potential top 10 pick absolutely does not guarantee that they have found their QB of the future.
Second, the Lions currently have what will end up being the worst defense in their franchise history and they will need to use their draft picks to improve it. The Lions currently have just five selections in the 2021 NFL Draft and I would not be opposed to them using all 5 of those picks on the defensive side of the football.
At some point, the Lions will have to select a QB to replace Matthew Stafford, we all know that. But that time is not now and it is not coming anytime soon. In fact, I believe whoever takes over as GM should sign Stafford to a contract extension and let him be their signal-caller for the foreseeable future.
I am well aware that half of you will agree with me and half of you just don’t know what you are talking about ;)
Great post!!!
Agree 100%. Can anyone with at least half of a football IQ tell me the last time the Lions had a playoff caliber defense? And was Matt Stafford the QB at that time? This ain’t rocket surgery…
Stafford has only been the Lions QB for 12 YEARS and No playoff, NO Super Bowls, its been, ALMOST, CLOSE, SHOULD HAVE, AND THE BIG IF ??????? alot of stats but NO Finish
I agree. Stafford is an above-average starter and would have won more with a defense and an effective enough run game to keep defenses off-balance.
“Agree 100%. Can anyone with at least half of a football IQ tell me the last time the Lions had a playoff caliber defense? And was Matt Stafford the QB at that time? This ain’t rocket surgery…” – Art Aldrich
2014, we were in the top 3 for defense [for the nfl]. Matt Stafford was the QB… and we had Calvin Johnson at the time. Literally no reason we shouldn’t have made it; but [spoiler alert] we didn’t make it past the first round. Maybe if you had “half a google IQ” you could have looked it up yourself. Its not rocket surgery…
I’m hoping that the mindset has changed with bringing in Spielman. One of the best defensive players in Lions history and a 4 time pro bowler. Defense, please? Offensive line please? Did I say defense, everywhere, please? The Lions have the offensive talent to score enough points. They need a line to make them multi-dimensional and keep key players from getting hurt, every, single, year. That’s when the Lions start racking up 40+ points a game. They need a defense. period. They can’t stop the run. They can’t stop the long ball. They can’t shut down the middle. They can’t create turnovers. I think the closest thing they have to an actual, on field, leader is Roberts, but he’s just not talented enough. One more time for those in the back of the room: Defense. Please? Thank you! :)