Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford could reach the 300 touchdown milestone in Sunday’s game against his former team, the Detroit Lions.
In 12 years with the Lions, Stafford had a record of 79-91-1.
Despite not logging as many wins as he would have liked during his Lions tenure, he threw a lot of touchdown passes.
282 of them, in fact.
Adding the 16 touchdowns he has thrown through six games as a Los Angeles Ram, he sits at 298.
Barring an injury or unforeseen circumstance, he will hit the record.
Stafford Joins Elite Group
If you think this seems like a normal rite of passage for an NFL quarterback in his 13th season, think again.
Only 12 NFL quarterbacks have ever achieved this.
The leader is Tom Brady with 598.
Aaron Rodgers, Matt Ryan, and Ben Roethlisberger are the other active quarterbacks in this elite group with 424, 403, and 357 respectively.
Hitting 300 tomorrow in his 172nd career game makes him the seventh fastest to do so.
Will Matthew Stafford reach 300 career TDs in Week 7?
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Rodgers was the quickest to get there in his 144th career game.
On the cusp is the injured Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks with 277.
Who Else Is On The List?
The retired legends with 300 or more are Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Philip Rivers, Dan Marino, Elli Manning, Fran Tarkenton, and John Elway who finished his career with exactly 300.
Is Brady’s Record Attainable?
Brady is in his 22nd season.
Stafford is in his 13th.
Russell Wilson is in his 10th season.
Stafford is 33 years old, and Wilson turns 33 in November.
Both have an outside chance at getting to Brady’s record, but it seems unlikely.
The longer Brady continues to play and adds to his number, the more difficult this will be.
Doing It In Detroit Is Amazing
I don’t know if the NFL schedulers were trying to plan it this way, but the timing is incredible.
As mentioned above, losing Stafford is bittersweet for the Lions fans.
He was the face of the organization and very successful in Detroit for 12 years.
45,109 Yards
282 Touchdowns
62.6 CMP%Matt Stafford’s run as @Lions QB was special 👏
📺: #DETvsLAR — Sunday 4:05pm ET on FOX
📱: NFL App pic.twitter.com/LRAKwC8TTj— NFL (@NFL) October 23, 2021
His desire to be traded did not seem to change the fans’ perception of him.
It is likely that they would prefer to see him break the record while the hometown Lions pull off the improbable upset win over the Stafford’s Rams.
For his part, Stafford does not compare his short time in LA to his long stint in Detroit.
NEXT: 3 Reasons Jared Goff Is Struggling Without Sean McVay“Everyone wants me to say, ‘I circled the Rams.’ I asked for a trade, not knowing anywhere where I was going to be. There were a bunch of different spots where I thought I could go. I ended up here. I’m extremely happy to be here, I pinch myself getting the opportunity to play for this team with these players and these coaches. As far as comparing it to Detroit, I’m not going to do it. I just know that I’m having a blast playing a bunch of football with some great players and great coaches. I loved my time in Detroit. I loved all the experiences I had. Some of them were tough but they helped mold me into the player and the person I am today. I spent some really meaningful time in my life, both on and off the field in Detroit. And I really enjoyed all of it. So, I’m having fun what I’m doing right now. I had a great experience for 12 years in Detroit. That’s kind of how I want to leave it.”
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