It was a disastrous season for Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams in 2022. Even after an injury-riddled campaign last season, Stafford was ranked as the 10th-best quarterback entering the 2023 season by those inside the NFL.
The Athletic’s Mike Sando polled 50 NFL insiders, which included eight general managers and 10 head coaches, along with other assistants, coordinators and executives. Those voters put Stafford in the second tier of quarterbacks, ranking him 10th among his peers.
Stafford was included in the second tier of quarterbacks in the NFL for the upcoming season. The nine quarterbacks that were put ahead of Stafford were Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Aaron Rodgers, Justin Herbert, Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson, Trevor Lawrence, and Dak Prescott.
“If he doesn’t get hurt, he is still a top-level quarterback,” a personnel director said. “I think he can still sling it around. The offense was not predicated on the run first even when they won the Super Bowl, so I think any time he is healthy and back there able to deal it, you can win because of him.”
Amid an eight-game absence from Stafford because of head and back injuries in 2022, the experienced quarterback posted only 2,087 yards, 10 touchdowns, and eight interceptions across nine starts. Meanwhile, he’s just one year removed from airing it out for 4,886 yards and 41 touchdowns en route to a Super Bowl victory in his debut season for the Rams.
Entering the upcoming season, the Rams aren’t a team that possesses lofty expectations as they set their sights on the future. Cooper Kupp, Van Jefferson, and Tyler Higbee are Stafford’s primary targets, while inexperienced or unproven players compete for roles in the offense.
Assuming that Stafford can remain healthy behind an improved offensive line, he could put up solid numbers in 2023. Even with last year being a forgettable one for Stafford, Sando is among the group that believes the 35-year-old quarterback is poised to bounce back this season.
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