Watch: Mic’d-up Matthew Stafford played through separated shoulder in 2009

Matthew Stafford played through a separated shoulder to help lift the Lions to victory as a rookie in 2009.

On his way out of Los Angeles, Jared Goff showed undeniable toughness by playing two games after undergoing surgery on his broken thumb. He helped the Rams top the Seahawks in the wild-card round before playing a turnover-free game against the Packers the following week.

With Matthew Stafford coming in, the Rams will transition from one tough quarterback to another. Back in 2009 when he was a rookie, Stafford finished a game against the Browns after suffering a separated shoulder. He took a big shot from a Browns defender, which caused the injury and sent Stafford to the sideline – but only briefly.

Against the recommendation of his trainers, Stafford fought to stay on the field for the final play of the game at the 1-yard line with the Lions trailing by six points and needing a touchdown for the win. He hit Brandon Pettigrew for a touchdown – his fifth of the day – with the clock showing zeroes, lifting the Lions to victory.

He was mic’d up for that sequence 11 years ago, which is worth watching again.

Stafford not only stayed in the game against the Browns, but he played the next week against the Packers and then the following game against the Bengals. But he was shut down for the final four weeks after that due to a separated shoulder.

There will be no questions about Stafford’s toughness in Los Angeles after seeing what he played through while with the Lions. This is one of the toughest quarterbacks in football, even if he’s not necessarily the most durable.