The Los Angeles Rams just won the recent Super Bowl 56 against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Super Bowl is the pinnacle for every young boy who dreamt of playing in the NFL. On average a boy who begins playing football at the age of five invests over twenty years of blood, sweat, tears, and hard work to play at the professional level. Now what we want to look at right now is the choice Matthew Stafford made in his 12th year in his NFL career to leave the Detroit Lions to join the Los Angeles Rams.

“With The First Pick In The 2009 NFL Draft…”

Matthew Stafford was sitting with his friends and family waiting for that call that every potential NFL player waits for, the call that says, you are now a part of our team and you are a professional football player. In 2009 the first pick in the NFL draft the Detroit Lions selected  Matthew Stafford quarterback. With that announcement Stafford became the man who would at that time be making the most guaranteed money than anyone in previous years of NFL history. 

The Detroit Lions have been known as a “losing” team. The previous year in 2008 before they picked Stafford in the draft their record was  0 – 16, that means they lost every single game that they played. The Lions invested a lot of money and trust into Stafford as they brought him onto the team. The Lions hoped that with the addition of Stafford they would experience a turn around in their losing history.

When It Rains It Pours

At the time when Staffiord joined the Lions the team had a receiver that arguably is one of the greatest receivers in all of NFL History, Calvin Johnson or as so many of his fans call him, Megatron. Detroit had a plan to have Megatron and Stafford transform their losing history into a winning one. Let’s just say the plan did not work out the way they expected. 

Over the next 12 years Stafford and Lions went through an exhausting uphill battle. Stafford was cursed with being injury prone. In 2009 he injured his shoulder and dislocated his knee, in 2010 he re-injured his separated shoulder, in 2011 he sprained his ankle and fractured his right index finger (throwing hand). In 2019 he fractured his back tailbone, in 2020 he tore his right thumb ligament, he injured his ribs, and sprained his ankle. These injuries added to the difficulty of breaking the losing culture and curse of the Lions. 

Detroit Just Could Not Win 

In the 2011 season with Megatron and Stafford as QB Megatron racked up 1,684 yards and 16 touchdown receptions. Megatron followed that season up by shattering Jerry Rice’s single-season receiving yards record, logging 1,964 yards on the year and having the league-high record of 122 receptions. Stafford and the superstar wide receiver continued to do well over the next few seasons, but despite all the work the Lions, Megatron and Stafford put in on the field, the Lions remained trapped in their curse of losing. 

During Stafford’s time with the Lions from 2009-2020, he only reached the playoffs three times, and he never managed to win a playoff game, losing to the Saints in 2012, the Cowboys 2015 and the Seahawks 2017. His overall record while he was with the Detroit Lions was sadly a losing record of 74 wins, 90 loses, and 1 tie. In the 2020 season Detroit’s record was 5 wins and 11 loses. 

This Kid Has Potential Though

If you look at Stafford from a statistical perspective, he is one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in NFL history. He was the former number one overall pick in 2009, he has thrown for 49,995 yards in his career, putting him at number twelve on the all-time list. Stafford is also number eleven in completions with 4,302 he is number twelve in passing touchdowns with 323. 

Over his twelve years with the Lions, Stafford has kept the team competitive, at least before Matt Patricia became the team’s head coach in 2018. Stafford enjoyed eight seasons of 4,000 or more yards passing, including a 5,038-yard season in 2011. Though Stafford is routinely injured, he’s one of the toughest quarterbacks in the game. He started 136 straight games from the 2011 season to the 2019 season which is good for sixth-most straight games of all time.

Stafford Chooses Legacy of Loyalty 

At 33 years of age, at the end of the 2020 season, after 12 years of losing with the Detroit Lions, and with winning a super bowl far from reach, Sttafford decided that he wanted out. Stafford knew he needed to make a change if he wanted to achieve his dream of becoming the best version of himself and winning a Super Bowl. 

Stafford also knew he could not do it alone; he needed the right team around him to do it. So even though he knew Detroit could deny his request to be traded he made the brave choice to have a conversation with the Lions and request to be traded. 

Stafford was traded to the Los Angeles Rams Jan. 2021 and he played his first game as a Ram in September 2021. Right out of the gates the team started with two wins against the Bears and the Colts. They go on to finish the regular season with a record of 12 wins and 5 loses, the first winning season for Stafford in a long time, plus they clinched the NFC West division. In the playoffs they played 3 big games and won each one which took them to the big Super Bowl game where they faced the Cincinnati Bengals, and of course they won the game. Wow in just under a year, a man went from a losing curse to a champion. 

The 3 Choices To Become A Champion  

1. Attitude in Adversity – Stafford faced a ton of adversity with injuries and so many years of just losing over and over again. He never lost his character or the attitude that he was going to work hard and continue to strive after his dream.
2. Courage To Change – Matthew Sttaford knew it was time for a change after the 2020 season and his 12th year with the Lions. He also knew under contract Detroit could deny his request to be traded but he had the courage to go in and ask anyway. 
3. Legacy vs. Loyalty – Matthew Stafford could have easily just sat back and enjoyed the millions of dollars he was making with the Lions. He could have stayed loyal to the first team that gave him a chance in the NFL. He could have stayed loyal to his friends and continued in Detroit. But instead of being loyal he chose to find another group of men that would help him achieve his dream and build his legacy as a Champion!

What Will You Choose – Loyal or Legacy?

Answer these questions then take some action!

1. What does your attitude and character say about you when you encounter adversity?
2. Where do you need to have the courage to ask for a change in your life? 
3. Are your group of friends wanting you to stay loyal when you could be building a legacy of championship in your life?
4. Are you stuck to the same group of guys you have always hung with, for the simple fact that they were your first buds?
5. How can you get around a team who will help you become a champion? 

I want to encourage you to join the winning team of HeRose The Men’s Mastermind as we enter into our free 5-Day Accountability Challenge. Come play with champions and see if it is what you need in your life! Join the challenge by requesting to join the 5-Day Accountability Challenge Facebook group.