“It’s why no one ever wants to rule him out…”
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford (ribs/thumb) is “preparing to play” versus the Tennessee Titans in Week 15.
When Stafford went down in Week 14, it looked eerily similar to when he went down in 2019, when his season ended with a back injury. Initial reports suggested it was possible for him to play but “too early to tell”. When reports surfaced of a rib cartilage injury, most were preparing for the worst.
Despite missing a week’s worth of practices, interim coach Darrell Bevell insisted there were no conversations surrounding shutting him down.
Stafford has a history of being able to play through injuries, and reports have been consistently positive that the chances of him playing were real. Now we know there was some fire to those smoke signals, and Stafford will once again play through a painful injury.
“You guys have seen it,” Bevell said. “You guys have covered this team way longer than I have been here, and you know what he’s done and what he’s played through. So I’m not putting him past (playing).”
As far as being prepared to play without practicing, this is something Stafford proved he could do earlier this season when he was forced to miss all of Week 9 practices due to a close contact COVID-19 situation, but he still was able to suit up against the Vikings that Sunday.
The competitor is Stafford is alive and well.