SloMotion

Oh boy, I saw this thread and I thought, "ouch", 656 was opening a big ol' can o' worms, . But, as usual, my knowledgeable, level-headed B&G bretheren maintained a proper perspective.

It's no secret Detroit is trying to emulate the New Orleans offense and I make comparisons between MatFord (Matthew Stafford) and Drew constantly. For obvious reasons, he loses that matchup, but he does display some of the characteristics that have made Brees one if the 'elite'.

The 'greats' have defining moments, those things fans key on and talk about for years to come. Stafford has had a few. His 5,000yd season (eclipsed that year by Drew, of course, ) and then following it up with a similiar performance last year. But the one that made me believe Detroit finally found a real gamer at QB was in '09 in a game against the Browns where he was injured on the second-to-last play of the game and then came back in to throw the game-winning touchdown with no time left on the clock ... the kid has 'moxie'. Yeah, it was the '09 Lions vs the Browns and I'm sure I embellish the story a bit, but there was no denying that day, .

The biggest knock on Stafford was his ability to stay healthy & he's quieted the critics somewhat this past two seasons. Having Megatron to throw to helps quite a bit as well, but when he's "on", he can throw with the best-of-'em. Maybe not as "icy" as the "other-Matt" in the league, but he is calm-under-fire and has shown a lot of composure. With time & experience, I think it's realistic to expect him to develop into a Drew-Brees-caliber QB and had he been given the opportunity to apprentice behind a quality starting QB as in the situation with Rodgers/Favre, I believe the results with Stafford would have been similiar. But, being thrown into the fire builds character, .

I'm hoping now Reggie tones down the rhetoric a little bit until he's been with the team & gets a few games under his belt. We get it, he's glad to be in Detroit and is optimistic for the future of the franchise ... we've been "getting-it" for 50yrs, Reg'.

Mardigras9

Agree with you about Stafford, you could see his potential at Georgia.

As far as Reggie, well do I really even need to say anything, lol.

K Major

Having lived in the DFW area for over a decade now, I saw potential from Stafford dating back to his Highland Park High School playing days. I like what he brings to the table.

WhoDat!656

[QUOTE=SloMotion;507277]

The 'greats' have defining moments, those things fans key on and talk about for years to come. Stafford has had a few. His 5,000yd season (eclipsed that year by Drew, of course, ) and then following it up with a similiar performance last year. But the one that made me believe Detroit finally found a real gamer at QB was in '09 in a game against the Browns where he was injured on the second-to-last play of the game and then came back in to throw the game-winning touchdown with no time left on the clock ... the kid has 'moxie'. Yeah, it was the '09 Lions vs the Browns and I'm sure I embellish the story a bit, but there was no denying that day, .

QUOTE]

This is what made me a believer in Stafford!

Just the fact that he knew the rule in that situation is impressive enough, but he came back in with a separated shoulder and threw a GW TD will/should be one of the greatest moments in Lions history.

"A Veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life."