This week’s matchup has been a long time coming for Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford,
The Denver Broncos are well aware of who they are facing on “Sunday Night Football.”
“He’s a big-time talent,’’ Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto said, per the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson on September 26. “He’s probably the greatest thrower of the football, you can make argument, that we’ve seen. It’s going to be a big-time challenge for us.”
Bonitto noted that Stafford does not drop back too deep in the pocket, emphasizing the need to get pressure on the reigning MVP to make him aware of their presence.
Teammate Zach Allen noted that they can affect Stafford in other ways, too.
“Stafford’s timing to throw is as good as anyone in the league,’’ Allen, an All-Pro defensive lineman, told Tomasson ahead of the matchup. “If we can tip a ball or just force an errant throw, that’s still very valuable.”
Matthew Stafford Returns to Denver for First Time Since 2011
Tomasson also noted that this is Stafford’s first trip to Denver since the 2011 season, when the now-Rams star was with the Detroit Lions.
“Stafford, in his sixth season with the Rams and 18th overall in the NFL, last played at Empower Field on that day for Detroit. He completed 21 of 30 passes for 267 yards and three touchdowns in a resounding 45-10 win by the Lions over the #Broncos,” Tomasson said in a post on X on September 27.
“It will be his third overall appearance against the Broncos, the other being a 24-12 home loss at Detroit on Sept. 27, 2015, when he completed 31 of 45 passes for 282 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.”
Stafford will look to get back in the win column against the Broncos in Week 4.
He will have to do it short-handed, though, with No. 1 wide receiver joining star defensive end Myles Garrett in dealing with an injury that will sideline him for this game and, possibly, longer.
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The Rams have not been very forthcoming with information regarding Nacua’s current ailment, leading to speculation around both the nature and severity of the issue. They have maintained that it is short-term, but surgery also remains a possibility.
Garrett’s timeline is now expected to skew closer to the previously reported six-week mark.
In the meantime, Stafford will lean on Davante Adams at wide receiver, but the Rams need someone else to take pressure off the veteran.
That does not mean it will be a wide receiver, though. The Rams entered the 2026 season with a lot of optimism around second-year second-round pick Terrance Ferguson and his ability as a playmaker in the passing attack.
He is obviously not the same kind of player or threat that Nacua is.
Still, Ferguson is capable of operating in a similar fashion in terms of being a bigger-bodied threat from the slot.
The Rams still have veteran tight ends Colby Parkinson–who is questionable for this contest after not practicing all week due to a knee injury–and Super Bowl champion Tyler Higbee as more traditional tight end options.
That just frees Ferguson up to be a weapon for Stafford and the Rams.
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