Anthony on LA: Stafford acquisition elevates Rams

When the Rams were knocked out of the playoffs by the Green Bay Packers in the NFL Playoffs’ divisional round, lots of questions surrounded next season’s Los Angeles squad. 

Would they be able to replicate their league-best defense with pending free agents like safety John Johnson and cornerback Troy Hill likely leaving? Would the third-best offensive line be able to create similar gaps between the tackles next season?

However, the most important question was a simple one — who would be their starting quarterback?

Franchise quarterback and former No. 1 pick Jared Goff looked far from promising last season, throwing 20 touchdowns with 13 interceptions. At times, he was flat out awful. This was most notably on display when Goff had two interceptions and two fumbles against the Miami Dolphins in a stinker.

If this was not enough for the Rams to start shopping for a new man under center, Goff was benched for backup quarterback John Wolford. With the final game of the season approaching and the Rams needing a win to get in the playoffs, Goff broke his thumb, prompting Wolford to step in to save the season.

Not only did he save the day, but Wolford stole Goff’s starting job in the playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. Unfortunately, he was knocked out of the game early on, prompting Goff to step in and get the victory. 

The celebrations ended there, however, as the Rams fell to the Packers a week later and the quarterback debate began once again. Goff was solid, throwing for 174 yards and a touchdown, but could not get the job done. 

Head coach Sean McVay silenced some doubts after the game saying: “Yeah, he’s the quarterback, right now.”

But we could see it coming, the trade was brewing and last Saturday it was finalized with Goff (and some draft picks) being sent to the Detroit Lions for veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford.

A former No. 1 pick himself, Stafford elevates the Rams into Super Bowl contention in the wild, wild NFC.

It’s a match made in heaven for Los Angeles — McVay finally gets a chance with a new quarterback and Stafford finally joins a stable franchise with championship aspirations. 

Stafford is also great friends with Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw and has a chance to deliver a title to the city just like Kershaw did last year.

Over the course of 12 years, Stafford played his way through five head coaches and only three playoff games, losing all three. Much of this mediocrity can be attributed to the failures of the Detroit Lions franchise rather than Stafford himself. 

The Rams are not yet a symbol of perennial postseason success yet, but they’re not far removed from a Super Bowl appearance, and they have fared much better than the Lions have since their return to L.A. With McVay able to work with the new gunslinging quarterback, they have a good shot of making a deep run next year. 

The receiving core of former Trojan Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp combined with rookie Van Jefferson and tight end Tyler Higbee also looks to be a blissful offering for Stafford. He’ll fit right into the offense McVay has built through the years — an offense reliant on the run game to transition the team into play action.

The Rams also have an outstanding running back in second-year player Cam Akers who blossomed as a starter late last season. Against the New England Patriots last season, Akers ran for 171 yards, the most ever by a rookie against the Patriots.

Akers will no longer have to run for 171 yards for the Rams to win a game. Stafford is more than capable of closing out a game late or carrying them against a fantastic run defense. 

He can throw it deep; he can toss it short; he can laser it through defenders; but most importantly, he can do something Goff failed to consistently do with the Rams — find a way to win the game through the air. 

The 6-foot-3 quarterback has 38 game winning drives in his career compared to Goff’s mere eight. Granted, Stafford has been in the NFL since 2009, but having 14 more drives than the great Aaron Rodgers is something to mention. 

For the Rams it’s simple — they finally have a quarterback to lean on. 

Stafford has the weapons at his disposal for a run in the playoffs. It’s only a matter of time before he unloads them and rams through the NFL. 

Anthony Gharib is a sophomore writing about Los Angeles professional sports. He is also the deputy sports editor at the Daily Trojan. His column, “Anthony on LA,” runs every other Wednesday.