Matthew Stafford is, by all accounts, the greatest quarterback in Detroit Lions history.
For years, he tried to keep them in contention despite having no talent around him besides Calvin Johnson.
He played through countless injuries and set almost every single passing-related mark in franchise history.
Then again, the fans are often quick to move on, and the players get the worst part of that even when they don’t decide to leave.
Lions fans greeted Stafford back to Michigan with chants that he was pretty used to hearing.
This time, however, they were rooting for another guy: Jared Goff.
Following the game, a reporter asked Stafford whether he had already gotten over those Jared Goff chants, and the former No. 1 pick looked completely unbothered (via The 33rd Team).
“Yeah, I am,” Stafford said.
“Are you over the Jared Goff chants?”
“Yeah, I am.” – Matthew Stafford
🎥: @riger1984 pic.twitter.com/e0yhiywHsr https://t.co/tKIE1HbeBF
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) September 9, 2024
Truth be told, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to boo Stafford.
He didn’t choose to leave in free agency — which would’ve been his right — and he didn’t even ask to be traded, even though his team was always very bad.
If anything, trading him to the Los Angeles Rams worked out perfectly for both sides.
He went on to win a Super Bowl as soon as he left and joined a competent team, and the Lions got a massive haul of key contributors to orchestrate this franchise turnaround.
Goff also wound up reviving his career.
Sports aren’t always fair, but it just feels wrong to see the fans booing someone who never disrespected them.
