I’m gonna talk about it on the podcast but the HOF bar is incredibly low now. Like a participation trophy. No all decade team. No All pro. No MVP. 1 Pro bowl. Not even MVP of the SB. Never considered the best in any year he played. At least M. Ryan has an MVP Those were the words of DB Richard Sherman, on whether or not he thinks Los Angeles Rams/Former Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford is a Hall of Fame worthy player. Then, we get this, from Julian Edelman: 50k pass yards, Super Bowl first year with a capable team. Give this man his flowers he's a HOF'er...Arm talent is some of the best we've seen. This seems to be the current focus of a lot of Twitter debate right now, ever since Stafford won the Super Bowl. Now, I know I can't really come at this from a completely unbiased viewpoint. I fully recognize that my #9 fandom absolutely comes to play in my opinion on this...yet, you might be surprised. I don't think either player is completely wrong...but, I don't think either is completely right either. The truth, when it comes to Matt Stafford, very much probably lies in the middle somewhere. Richard Sherman is correct to point out the lack of individual accolades. It is indisputable that when it comes to All-Pro selections, Pro Bowl selections, etc, Stafford is lacking. But what Sherman doesn't want to mention, is that Matt Stafford happens to play in a league, in a conference, at the same time as some of the greatest QBs who ever lived. Maybe you don't buy that excuse, and that's fine. But, I would argue that Stafford gets overlooked because of the "bigger" names. Sherman also ignores the NFL records: Fastest to 20k passing yards? Matt Stafford. Fastest to 30k passing yards? Matt Stafford. Fastest to 40k passing yards? Matt Stafford. Fastest to 50k passing yards? (will be Matt Stafford, early in game 1 next season) Most Game Winning Drives in a single season (8) in 2016 Only one of 9 NFL QBs to ever throw for 5,000 yards in a season Stafford was also Comeback POY. But...that doesn't mean Julian Edelman is right either. Right now, if Matt Stafford were to retire tomorrow, and never play another down in the NFL, I am not convinced he'd be inducted into the Hall of Fame either. But...here is what Richard Sherman doesn't understand. When people ask "Is Matt Stafford a HOFer", they aren't really asking if he is literally a HOF player, right now, at this very second. The question people are really asking is this: "Will Matt Stafford be a HOFer, if he stays healthy and continues to play at the same level for x amount of years?" That additional qualifier is built into the question, even if that part isn't spoken out loud, or written down. So...what will his stats look like, IF he stays healthy for say, another 5 years? Here are his career stats (182 games), followed by what they should approximately look like if we pro-rate stats to show another 5 seasons (85 more games, 267 games total) at his career pace: Current Career stats: 49,995 yards, 323 TDs, 161 INTs Pro-Rated to age 38: 73,344 yards, 473 TDs, 236 INTs You throw for 70k+ yards and over 450 TDs, you are a Hall of Famer, period. The answer to the question "WILL MATT STAFFORD BE A HOFer?", is unquestionably, YES. If Matt Stafford stays healthy, and keeps playing at the same level for even 5 more years (until he is 38), his HOF resume will be undeniable. It is absolutely debatable whether or not Matt Stafford has already done enough to merit a HOF induction...Even as a diehard Lions fan/Stafford fan, I am not 100% convinced that through age 33, he merits it...But 5 years from now, when he is top 5 in passing yards, top 5 in TDs, top 5 in Game Winning Drives, top 5 in 4th Q Comebacks, when he is the fastest player to reach 50k, 60k and probably 70k passing yards in addition to already being the fastest to 20k, 30k and 40k, I think it will be next to impossible to argue against his induction... Is Matt Stafford currently a HOFer? Maybe, maybe not. Will Matt Stafford be a HOFer someday? Yes. Yes he will.
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