Matthew Stafford should have Rams fans as hyped as Sean McVay

Matthew Stafford joining the Los Angeles Rams has head coach Sean McVay hyped and fans should feel the exact same about their new quarterback.

Because it happened so early in the offseason, you might’ve forgotten that the Los Angeles Rams traded for quarterback Matthew Stafford. Even if you didn’t forget, so much has gone down throughout the NFL since that deal that many fans might be ready to dismiss the trade. If head coach Sean McVay is to be believed, though, we should be doing the opposite.

It has been heavily speculated that, given McVay’s role in helping make personnel decisions, that the head coach was instrumental in making the Stafford trade happen. The belief is that he recognized that, even if he could maximize Jared Goff — who was shipped to Detroit in the deal –he needed more talent at quarterback to get over the Super Bowl hump.

And apparently McVay is liking the early returns from his new quarterback.

Talking to Albert Breer of The MMQB, who described McVay as about to “jump through the phone”, the head coach said this after seeing his new quarterback on the field this offseason:

"“Bro, this dude’s a bad MF-er,” he said, laughing. “Whatever people say about him, as good as it can be, he’s even better than advertised. It makes sense to him. The guy’s ability to see the game, his ability to draw on his experiences, the feel that he has, it’s pretty special and unique. And man, his feel for people, his authentic way of connecting with his teammates, his coaches, this guy, it’s great being around him.”"

Talk about rave reviews.

What Sean McVay is saying about Matthew Stafford should be music to Rams fans ears and terrifying to upcoming opponents.

Now, it should be noted that this what many refer to as “best-shape-of-their-life” season. It’s the time after offseason workouts and minicamps when there are numerous reports that players are set up to have the best years of their careers for one reason or another. So everything should be taken with a grain of salt — the size of that grain, however, can vary.

In this case, it’s hard not to buy what McVay is selling. Though he may not have been perfect, Matthew Stafford was never the problem with the Lions. In fact, there were many years in which he elevated Detroit to play at heights they had no business performing at. But the defense, offensive line, skill position players, coaching and a number of other issues ultimately hindered what Stafford could do.

That’s no longer the case in Los Angeles. Even if the offensive line could be better, McVay’s mastermind scheme and the talent around Stafford is the best that’s ever been around the quarterback as a whole. Yes, there isn’t a Calvin Johnson but the totality of the situation is better.

Considering that the Rams have been a perennial playoff team and made it to a Super Bowl with Goff at the helm of the offense, if what McVay is saying of Matthew Stafford is true, the rest of the league should be on alert. This is a substantially underrated but immensely talented quarterback now in a beautifully designed scheme with talent that can help him win, not just ask him to it himself. And that could unlock something truly special with the Rams in the 2021 season.