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Matthew Stafford 2022 NFL Player Outlook: Building On Super Bowl Win, First Top-12 Finish In Four Years
2 years agoIt took a while, but long-time Detroit Lions quarterback and now Los Angeles Rams passer Matthew Stafford finally broke through and reached the promised land. Yes, it took a change of scenery and a loaded offense, and whatever you want to think that helped Stafford get that chip. Does any of that take from his talents? No, not at all. Because the 34-year-old has been a legit stud for all of his career. Barring his first two years in the league (13 of 32 possible games started), Stafford has averaged 17.7 FP per game while finishing as the average QB12 in the 2011-2021 span. Only Tom Brady has appeared in 160+ games since 2011 (included), putting up a higher FPPG average than Stafford. Even if you lower the bar to 100+ games played, Stafford would still rank sixth-best in FPPG behind Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Cam Newton, and Russell Wilson. Not bad company. The Rams have kept their offense intact, barring the virtually-impactless exchange of Odell Beckham Jr. (free agent departure) for Allen Robinson II (free agent signing). I said that because OBJ only played eight regular-season games for the Rams last year (average of 10.9 PPR points per game), and A-Rob logged 12 starts for the Bears while averaging 7.3. Assuming a little bounce-back season from Robinson, he should reach that 10-point average and leave things where they stood last year. Stafford is one of the premier QBs in the NFL, a proven champion, and most probably the cheapest (in terms of ADP) option locked into a top-12 finish at the position with upside for a top-6 fantasy campaign.
