Stafford carries burden of 54-61 overall mark
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford and Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw grew up playing sports together in Dallas. In Little League, they were a battery with Kershaw the pitcher and Stafford the catcher. In high school, they switched roles with Kershaw playing center on the freshman team and Stafford playing quarterback.
More than a decade after graduating from high school, they share more than an alma mater; they share the same tax bracket.
Kershaw is the highestpaid player in Major League Baseball, earning $33 million this season. Stafford is the highest-paid player in the NFL, earning $27 million.
But for all the money they’ve earned — more than $163 million combined so far — they haven’t enjoyed great success in the postseason. Kershaw won Game 1 of the World Series earlier this week to even his postseason record at 7-7 with a 4.21 ERA. He has never won a World Series.
Stafford is 0-3 in the playoffs, including a 26-6 loss against Seattle after the 2016 season. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft, Stafford has just three winning seasons to his credit in his first eight seasons in the NFL. He enters the nationally televised game Sunday night against the Steelers with a 54-61 record and has the Lions 3-3 this season.
Still, the Steelers know how dangerous Stafford can be. When the teams met four years ago at Heinz Field, Stafford threw for 327 yards and had 27 points on the scoreboard by halftime.
The Steelers shut down Stafford in the second half and won the game, but Steelers coaches and players don’t have to be reminded of his quick-strike abilities.
“This guy is a great player,” defensive coordinator Keith Butler said. “There is a reason they paid him. He has a cannon on him. He’s very accurate. He’s had some people get hurt around him, and that’s hurt him a little bit, but he’s an excellent football player.”
That was a Steelers team in transition. They were on their way to a second consecutive 8-8 season and another season without a playoff appearance. The starting cornerbacks in that game were Cortez Allen and Ike Taylor, and the starting safeties were Ryan Clark and Troy Polamalu.
This time around Stafford will be throwing against the NFL’s top-rated pass defense. The Steelers are allowing just 147 yards passing game.
The Steelers haven’t faced a roster of Hall of Fame quarterbacks in the first seven weeks. Kansas City’s Alex Smith was the best, and they shut him down most of the game.
Stafford could be the biggest challenge to date, and the Steelers know it.
“He’s the highest-paid player in our league for a reason,” veteran cornerback Joe Haden said. “He can make all the throws. He’s been doing it a long time. He’s a gunslinger. He’s not afraid to throw the ball. He squeezes the ball in tight windows. He has a special arm.”
This Lions team is different, too. In that game four years ago, Stafford’s favorite target was Calvin Johnson, who had 179 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He has since retired, and Stafford now has a variety of targets who share his passes.
Golden Tate and Marvin Jones are his top two receivers. Tate, who leads the team with 363 receiving yards, has an injured shoulder and might not play Sunday. He has been limited the past two days in practice.
The Lions have seven players with at least 100 yards receiving. And all but one have caught at least one touchdown.
“You don’t know who is going to get the brunt of the passes,” Haden said. “He spreads the ball around. He spreads it out to receivers, running backs, tight ends. Anyone can get the ball. With Calvin gone, he’s made them more open. He can just throw wherever.”
If the Steelers get a lead in this game, they can’t relax. Even though Stafford has struggled in recent weeks, he is one of the best comeback quarterbacks in the league.
He has 26 fourth-quarter comeback victories in his career, including eight in 2016. He also has one this season, when he threw two fourthquarter touchdown passes to help Detroit battle back to beat Arizona, 35-23.
“He has a real good command of the offense,” Butler said. “He knows what he’s doing. He’s a very smart guy. The stuff you show him in the first half he gets it down and comes back and attacks you in the second half. They’re a good comeback team. It’s going to be hard to put these guys out if we beat them.”