Detroit Lions: Do Matthew Stafford’s stats tell the story?
Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is having another great season in the Motor City, but what story do his stats tell?
The quarterback position is the only position in football where a single player is credited and judged by wins and losses. Sometimes it’s completely fair, other times it’s not.
Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is having another great season, even if credited with a record of 8-6 so far. But what do the stats say?
Over the last three games, Stafford has been “in the zone” as noted by Lions senior writer and insider, Tim Twentyman:
Stafford is in the zone. He’s completed over 75-percent of his passes in three consecutive games to become 1st player in team history to achieve this over a three-game span (82.8 at Bal 12/3, 81.8 at TB 12/10 and 75.8 vs. Chi 12/16).
— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) December 17, 2017
That’s great for a short period of the season, but what about the entire season so far? Stafford is third in overall yards with 3,920 and will cross the 4,000 yard mark for the seventh consecutive season, also the seventh time in his career. Actually, he only missed the milestone in his first two seasons when missing significant time due to injury.
This season, Stafford is fourth in completions with 332, fourth in yards per game with 280, tied for fifth in touchdown passes with 25, tied for first in pass plays for 40+ yards with 13, third in pass plays of 20+ yards with 54 and eight overall for completion percent at 66.3 (minimum of 100 attempts). Those are some pretty impressive stats, especially considering he’s been sacked second most in the NFL this season with 43.
Stafford is squarely in the mix of the upper echelon of quarterbacks in the NFL. New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees were most commonly named alongside Stafford when looking up these statistics. That’s great company.
So why are these other quarterbacks commonly named as the best in the league when Stafford is right there with them? It comes down to winning football games. Stafford puts up the stats and carries this Lions team on his back whenever he can. But, quite simply, he hasn’t won a championship. Or made noise in the playoffs. Or secured a division title.
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Overall, the stats are saying that Stafford is a great quarterback. But, as well all know, football is a team game. The quarterback can win you games and he can lose you games, but there are many other players on the field that factor into the final score. Once again, it feels like this Lions team is on the cusp of putting it all together. Stafford is definitely doing his part. Let’s see if it leads to a playoff appearance this year.