Replacing Matthew Stafford may not happen immediately
By Robert Jones
The Lions need a complete rebuild, not a retooling
The big question on the lips of the Honolulu Blue and Silver faithful, beyond who the next head coach and general manager will be is; will the Lions move on from Matthew Stafford this offseason?
Matthew holds pretty much every meaningful passing statistic in the history of the Detroit Lions and will go into the record books as one of the team’s best quarterbacks ever. However, if we’re being honest, this franchise desperately needs a complete rebuild. If the new regime agrees, then it is possible that this will be Stafford’s last season in a Lions uniform.
We should find out much sooner rather than later what the Lions’ new regime will do since Matthew’s $10 Million roster bonus will kick in on the 5th day of the league’s 2021 new year, which is tentatively scheduled to begin on March 21.
If Sheila truly leaves the decision up to her new general manager and coach and they want a fresh start, then is a very good chance Matthew will be traded before the Lions have to pony up that bonus money.
I have heard some fans express how much they would like the Lions to keep Matthew to mentor his replacement. There is one problem with this way of thinking; keeping Matthew during a full rebuild is a waste of his time as well as the Lions.
If the Lions are completely in ‘start over’ mode, then having Matthew try to rally a young rebuilding roster only keeps him from having any chance of turning his legacy around in a different city with a possible contender. It also holds the Lions back from developing a young passer.
However, if the new regime claims they are not rebuilding and just reloading, then Sheila has done nothing more than the usual Ford family shuffle and Lions fans everywhere are destined to be disappointed again.
But provided the right general manager and head coach are brought in to build an actual winner, then the likelihood is that Matthew Stafford will be gone. What isn’t a guarantee, however, is that the Lions quarterback of the future will even be on the roster next season.