Matthew Stafford has seen the Los Angeles Rams roster dramatically change since arriving in 2021.
When Stafford was first traded to the Rams, the team was full of high-profile stars and veterans with valuable years of experience at the NFL level. However, the 2023 season is a complete 180 from that as Stafford’s teammates are much younger and inexperienced.
For someone like Stafford who’s been around for over 10 years, bonding with a new generation of players can be tough. In fact, his wife Kelly recently said that the quarterback has had trouble connecting with the younger players in the locker room.
However, Stafford came out and downplayed the comments his wife made. “No, I think more probably from you guys than anything else. I was going to come out here with a newspaper under my arm with some spectacles. Set the mood, but it turns out you can’t even find a newspaper around here so I couldn’t do that. I was going to try to have some fun with it, but no it’s been great. I love coming to work. I love working with these guys and they all know that.”
As for if he feels close to his teammates, Stafford emphasized that he does. “I do, definitely. I definitely do.”
When comments concerning the locker room get publicized it can create awkward situations, but Stafford said that it hasn’t been a distraction.
“No, I think those guys understand where I’m coming from. They see me come in this building every single day and know how I go to work, know how I interact with everybody and we didn’t really think too much about it to be honest with you.”
Lastly, Stafford also said he doesn’t believe the comments got taken out of context and added that the team is moving forward.
“No, I think so and listen, I’m not too worried about it. Nobody in that locker room is too worried about it, I can promise you that. We’ve completely moved on not that we ever really stopped to think about it, to be honest with you. But yeah, I’m not too worried about it.”
No one would blame Stafford’s teammates for taking exception to what was said, but it sounds like everyone remains on the same page with Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks on tap. For now, the Rams are focused on football and any outside noise won’t get in the way of their goal to compete and win games.
