Matthew Stafford has been a part of several high-profile games, but he had his hands full in Week 14 against the Buffalo Bills.
With the Los Angeles Rams needed a win to keep its playoff hopes alive, Stafford and the team delivered a pivotal 44-42 victory over the Bills to improve to 7-6 and remain in the hunt.
Both offenses were on full display during the game, though it was Stafford and company who edged out Bills superstar Josh Allen.
Stafford credited the offensive line for keeping him upright and opening up some room for the running game. “I think our guys did an amazing job up front,” Stafford said. “When you look at it, in the run game and the pass game, they did a great job of keeping me clean against a really good rush.
“We had some creases in the run game too so it starts with those guys. They did a hell of a job and when they do that, it allows us to go operate at the receiver spot, at the running back spot and at my spot. I’m just proud of those guys and the effort they put forward today.”
Stafford also praised the Rams as a whole, saying it was the team’s most complete game during the 2024 season. “Yeah, this season for sure. I think it was both run and pass and a nice job in the red zone. We had to kick a field goal, but really did a nice job the rest of the day down there.
“I’m just proud of our guys, proud of the execution and the toughness. They were going to kind of dare us to run it in early in the first half and we were able to do it so it was great.”
As for his own strong showing, Stafford didn’t have an explanation but highlighted the team’s week of practice and his own personal mindset.
“I don’t know. I was just ready to go today. I thought our team had a great week of practice, [was] ready to compete and ready to go. We just kind of got into a rhythm there and our guys were doing a nice job of getting open. I was just trying to give them chances to make some plays.”
Los Angeles has suffered some tough losses this year, but their win against Buffalo is the type of stuff that can propel a team down the stretch.
Matthew Stafford knew he would be in shootout against Bills’ Josh Allen
Josh Allen is the clear front runner for MVP this season and Matthew Stafford knew that the Rams would need to put up points to keep up with him and the Bills. “Yeah, absolutely. He is an unbelievable quarterback and a great competitor.
“The way he plays the game is different from a lot of guys at our position. I have a ton of respect and admiration for how he plays. I knew was going to be a tough task for our team on the defensive side of the ball. I was happy that on the offensive side, we were doing our part to try to keep us close and keep us in it. Obviously getting the win was huge.”
On the day, Allen was responsible for six total touchdown which goes to show that no defense in the league has a real answer for him when he has it going.
