Matthew Stafford may be healthy, but he and the Los Angeles Rams are struggling to cobble up wins so far during the 2024 season.
The Rams sit at 1-4 during their bye week with their most recent loss coming against the Green Bay Packers in Week 5. It was a winnable game for Los Angeles as they were able to slow down Green Bay and Jordan Love in the first half before giving up one too many explosive plays in the second half.
Without his top-two receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, Stafford has been forced to lean on the likes of Jordan Whittington, Colby Parkinson and Tutu Atwell. However, Stafford is still moving the football through the air as evidenced by the Packers game when he threw for 260 yards and a touchdown.
While the loss stung, Stafford was able to make history as he moved past Eli Manning on the NFL’s all-time passing yards list into 10th place. Manning congratulated Stafford on the accomplishment, though made some jokes in his message, via NFL Legacy:
Matthew Stafford cracking the NFL's top 10 in career passing yards (among other things) feels very personal to Eli Manning. pic.twitter.com/UIIEDXRrWz
— NFL Legacy (@NFLLegacy) October 3, 2024
Manning has become well-known for his dry sense of humor and in his video to Stafford he questions why he’s congratulating the Rams quarterback on passing him on the list. He also jokes about not making a video for Stafford when the latter passes him on the all-time list for passing touchdowns.
Stafford is seven touchdowns away from passing Manning and he could accomplish the feat in the next few weeks, especially if Kupp and Nacua are able to make their way back to the field. Kupp is targeting a Week 7 return while Nacua is still likely a few weeks out.
Until those two return, though, head coach Sean McVay and Stafford will need to find ways to keep defenses honest with the personnel they have. The two are no strangers to working through, adversity, though, so it’ll be interesting to see how the Rams respond in Week 7 when they take on the Las Vegas Raiders.
Matthew Stafford says Rams can’t be afraid to put themselves back out there
It can be deflating for a team to lose games in bunches, but Matthew Stafford isn’t giving up or wavering just yet. Stafford recently discussed L.A.’s rough start and believes that everyone needs to confidently move forward and continue to play the best they can.
