Getty Matthew Stafford gestures during a 2018 Lions game.
Matthew Stafford didn’t finish the 2019 season due to injury, but that hasn’t stopped folks from seeing the writing on the wall in terms of him being a top player for the Detroit Lions in 2020.
This offseason, Stafford has been a darling in the minds of several in the media and continues to occupy a high spot on several lists. The most recent list that had him surging near the top came courtesy of former league signal caller Chris Simms.
Simms, who works for NBC Sports, annually puts out his top 40 quarterback list. Stafford checked in this season in the number 9 slot perhaps ironically considering his number. Stafford placed ahead of several bigger names on the list, including Super Bowl winners like Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Ben Roethlisberger.
Revealing the Top 5 on today’s pod with @PaulWBurmeister. Any questions you want us to answer about #10-6, fire away. And “This list sucks” isn’t a question. 😜
Stafford so high on this list will undoubtably ruffle some feathers across the league seeing as his trophy case is pretty empty, but this list is more an indication on who the top quarterbacks project to be in any given year. To that end, Stafford belongs. He’s likely to be one of the top 10 players at his position in the league this season.
Matthew Stafford High on Quarterback Tier List
Like every year, CBS Sports analyst Jason La Canfora put out his quarterback tier rankings, placing league signal callers into multiple categories. They are the bona fide franchise quarterbacks (tier 1), top pros and proven winners (tier 2), rising stars (tier 3), you can win with them (tier 4), guys, veterans and placeholders (tier 5), good luck (tier 6) and the jury is out (tier 7).
This offseason, Stafford fell into the “top pros and proven winners” category. Alongside him were Matt Ryan and Dak Prescott. In terms of the explanation why, La Canfora hinted that he is ready for Stafford to do some big winning, and thinks he will get to that in 2020 when healthy.
He said:
“Stafford has always been underappreciated and let down by those around him. He was looking like an MVP last year before he got hurt. I bet he picks up where he left off.”
Last season, Stafford was a tier 4 quarterback, or deemed “someone you can win with.” Obviously, La Canfora is looking at Stafford as a player on the rise for this season and thinks he can start to do some major winning on the field.
That’s the hope for the Lions as they move into a new season.
Matthew Stafford Called Elite Quarterback
Stafford is clearly valued by folks accross in the NFL community in a big way. Recently, Bucky Brooks of NFL.com revealed a list of his top 5 quarterbacks who are transcendent in the league right now. Stafford was included, and was included amongst some true luminaries right now at the position.
It’s likely to be controversial for many that Stafford is on the list given his lack of big success in the NFL in terms of wins and losses at this point, but there is little doubting the fact that Stafford has some major talent to rely on at this point. He’s got a great arm and all the tools to dominate.
The hope is Stafford’s talent shines through and he starts to win bigger on the big stage in the future. If so, he would only be more likely to move up on lists like this.