Getty Matthew Stafford reacts against Green Bay.
Matthew Stafford has been a solid player for the Detroit Lions for the most part, but he hasn’t been without his share of criticism from across the league.
Amid another historic Lions meltdown in Week 2, Stafford made a bad mistake to help aid in Detroit’s defeat when he threw an ugly interception in the. second half. Fox Sports analyst Colin Cowherd was watching, and he admitted it was the kind of throw some rookie quarterbacks wouldn’t make.
Matt Stafford still makes throws a rookie QB shouldn’t make. That was awful.
Stafford has had his share of hype coming into 2020, but so far, the quarterback has fired 2 costly interceptions on the season both of which played a massive outcome in the games. As a veteran, Stafford has to do a better job at limiting the damage and being better with the ball.
Where the Lions and Stafford go this year is anybody’s guess, but the Lions have seen inconsistency just like this from their quarterback in his career. It continues to be a talking point, especially as Stafford makes some incredible throws yet some head scratchers in every game.
Matthew Stafford’s Interception
Detroit allowed the Packers back in the game, and once that occurred, the floodgates opened once Stafford and the offense got inconsistent. Stafford, backed up in the shadow of his goal line, fired an ugly interception right to the Packers resulting in an easy defensive touchdown.
Here’s the play:
🚨PACKERS PICK-6🚨
(via @NFL)
The score made the game 31-14 and has essentially put the game out of reach after the Lions raced out to an early 14-3 lead. If last week’s collapse was heartbreaking, this one is just ugly from the Detroit perspective, as the team hasn’t done much right since their early run in any phase.
Stafford, projected for an elite season this year coming off injury, already has 2 interceptions on the young 2020 season. His Lions’ offense has looked good at times, but wildly inconsistent at other times which has to be frustrating for Detroit.
Safe to say this interception isn’t helping anyone feel good about their prospects moving forward as it relates to having a dangerous attack, and it caught Cowherd’s attention.
Matthew Stafford Called Volatile 2020 QB
Recently, Pro Football Focus took a look at picking out some quarterback tiers for every signal caller this coming season. Stafford himself was said to be a tier 3 player, which is defined by writer Steve Palazzolo as a “volatile or conservative quarterback that rely heavily on supporting cast and play calling” in any given season.
Here is what Palazzolo wrote on Stafford’s case:
“Stafford getting back to a downfield attacking machine is a great sign for the Lions, and that should absolutely be their approach in 2020. There are a handful of games each year in which Stafford looks like a top-five quarterback, using his strong arm and playmaking feel to make “wow” plays all over the field. While it’s not easy to bottle that up and trot it out there for 16 games, a more aggressive, downfield-throwing Stafford has a much better chance of unlocking that potential, and the Lions have the skill position talent to put points on the board.”
The rating for Stafford isn’t likely too far off. Certain seasons the quarterback has been better than others, and it has a direct result of what type of players he has complementing him and what type of system he is playing in. With Darrell Bevell now in the fold and the team looking comfortable on offense, the hope is that the Lions have finally found Stafford the kind of system that allows for consistency.
Right now, though, Stafford hasn’t found that consistency and keeps making the same kind of mistakes. That’s what Cowherd is alluding to with his tweet.