Week 11 QB projections • DET Stats
QB Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions
HT: 6-2, WT: 225, Born: 2-7-1988, College: Georgia, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 1
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Stats and Week 11 Projection
| WK | OPP | RES | CMP | ATT | PYD | Y/A | PTD | INT | RSH | YD | Y/R | TD | FPT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | vs STL | L, 10-17 | 14 | 33 | 168 | 5.1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 1 | 13 |
| 9 | at SEA | L, 20-32 | 22 | 42 | 203 | 4.8 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | |
| 10 | at MIN | L, 10-27 | 29 | 51 | 224 | 4.4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 7.0 | 0 | 19 |
| SEASON TOTAL | 144 | 265 | 1489 | 5.6 | 6 | 12 | 12 | 82 | 6.8 | 2 | 101 | ||
| 11 | vs CLE | PROJ | 21 | 34 | 232 | 6.8 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 15 |
Week 11 Injury Status and Other News
He was listed as probable on Friday's official injury report. [Fri Nov 20, 6:46 PM] Matthew Stafford partially participated in Friday's practice but is still expected to play in Week 11.[Thu Nov 19, 6:18 PM] Matthew Stafford partially participated in Thursday's practice.
[Wed Nov 18, 6:07 PM] Matthew Stafford partially participated in Wednesday's practice.
[Tue Nov 17, 5:54 PM] Matthew Stafford Tom Kowalski, of Mlive.com, reports Matthew Stafford is still not 100 percent healthy. Head coach Jim Schwartz said, "Sometimes, he gets up and he can't put pressure on his knee and he hobbles his way off the field." Schwartz has praised Stafford for being able to play through the injury. Schwartz added, "We didn't know how he would deal with an injury and how he would play through it. He's proved that through the last couple weeks."
Opinion (from The Upgrade/Downgrade/Waiver Report): This was probably one of the toughest games that Stafford had this season. To his credit, he handled it better than he has the last two weeks. Unfortunately, it didn't help the final outcome. Stafford was under constant pressure the entire game. He was hurried, hit, sacked and pounded on almost every play, and when he was able to find the open man and get him the ball, the receiver on the other end dropped it. Stafford stayed focused, and led his team the entire way, despite a serious lack of help from anyone else. His running game was inconsistent, and his receivers were not getting open quick enough to keep him on his feet. By the end of the game, his passes were landing well short of the receivers, skipping into their hands. On their final possession, he looked tired and winded. It was unfortunate because he played a pretty good game from a fantasy prospective. Stafford will remain the starter in Detroit if he's healthy. How long he'll remain healthy is the bigger question.
Opinion (from Bob Henry's sleeper report): There are bad teams and then there are really bad teams. This week, not only do the loyal fans of the Motor City get to witness the ineptitude that is the Lions, but they also get to see them play one of the few teams that are probably worse than them. After facing the Vikings pass rush in the noisy Metrodome last week, Matthew Stafford is at home facing a Browns defense that is allowing opposing QBs an average passer rating of 90.8, thanks to a healthy 60.3% completion rate, 10 TDs allowed compared to just 4 INTs and 240 yards per game. Their defensive line played well against the Ravens on Monday Night, and Shaun Rogers will have plenty of incentive going against his former team, but Stafford should be up to the task. It's not like the Lions will only need to throw the ball 18 times like Joe Flacco and the Ravens. Stafford still isn't a very good play, but as reaches go, he might have some usefulness, particularly to those of you in leagues requiring two QBs each week. For those of you looking at the other side of this matchup, and Brady Quinn, keep this much in mind. Stafford has Calvin Johnson, Quinn doesn't have anyone even close. Stafford is at home, Quinn not. Stafford has a legitimate NFL arm, Quinn not so much.
Week 11 Matchup Info
vs Cleveland Browns - Detailed analysis coming soon.
Game Summaries
Week 1 at NO - Stafford was down two touchdowns after having taken only three snaps from center, a tall order against a veteran defense led by an aggressive coordinator. Stafford did show a strong arm and good accuracy early, hitting Calvin Johnson in stride on a quick hitter then showing good balance and touch on a screen to Kevin Smith. Things began to come apart as the Saints turned up the pressure, however, and Stafford began to throw off his back foot and rush throws on timing patterns during the second quarter. Stafford's footwork and mechanics completely came apart in the second half. His accuracy suffered as a result, overthowing sideline passes and leaving deep passes short of their mark or behind their intended receivers. He would be intercepted three times and nearly picked on a number of others.Week 2 vs MIN - For the young QB, it was almost like there were two different games. In the first half, Stafford looked poised and in control. He made solid throws and led the Lions on several solid drives. He missed Calvin Johnson in the end zone early, but in general was solid and in control. He had a nice run after being flushed from the pocket in the second quarter where he stretched and almost got the first down. His interception in the second quarter was a rookie mistake where he rolled out and tried to force the ball in rather than throw it away. He had a similar play later in the game and threw the ball out of bounds, proving he learns from his mistakes. In the second half, Stafford was clearly out of sync with his team. He had several bad throws and missed a wide open Bryant Johnson late in the 4th quarter that could have gotten the Lions back in the game. His second interception was a bad throw when he tried to force the ball into Brandon Pettigrew after being pressured. Another rookie mistake. In the second half, Stafford did have some solid throws, but he was not nearly as sharp as he was in the first half and the quick scores by the Vikings after the turnovers clearly upset him.
Week 3 vs WAS - Stafford has his best game as a pro, and it led to the Lions' first win in 20 games. Many of the rookie mistakes that he made last week were not present this week against the Redskins. He didn't force the ball into coverage as he has done earlier this season, and he used his legs to roll out and create more time when he was under pressure. His primary target was Bryant Johnson, a guy who was a complete non-factor last week, and when the offense was sputtering in the second half, he didn't lose focus and kept the team in position to win. On their final position, when they had to keep the clock rolling, Stafford executed a perfect run fake and hit backup TE Will Heller on an outside corner route for 24 yards and kept the drive alive. Stafford didn't play like a rookie in this game and he was a big factor in why the Lions are on a winning streak now.
Week 4 at CHI - Stafford put up respectable numbers against Chicago, keeping the Lions in the Week 4 game against Chicago throughout the first half. Stafford racked up 221 yards in the first half on 23 attempts, moving the ball well and keeping pace with Jay Cutler and Matt Forte pushing the totals higher on the scoreboard. Stafford could have had an even bigger day but his accuracy leaves something to be desired. His receivers were open on most every attempt, but it was Stafford's errant throws (often too high) that cost Detroit the completion. Late in the game, Stafford was sacked and his knee folded under him, forcing him to leave the game in favor of Daunte Culpepper. Stafford did not return to the game after the injury, but Detroit was likely just playing it safe as the game was already decided by the midpoint of the fourth quarter. It remains to be seen if he will be healthy enough to face Pittsburgh in Week 5.
Week 5 vs PIT - Stafford was held out of the Week 5 contest with Pittsburgh due to his knee subluxation. The Lions have a bye in Week 7 after they visit Green Bay next week, so Detroit may wait one extra game to buy Stafford extra time off.
Week 8 vs STL - This was Stafford's first game back since he was injured in week four against the Bears. The rookie was clearly rusty in his return and looked out of sync for most of the game. It didn't help his cause that his #1 WR Calvin Johnson was inactive for the game. To help him get back into the swing of things, the Lions looked to run the ball early and often, focusing on runs and short passes to RBS on the first eight plays of the game. However, when he tried to go downfield, he hit Bryant Johnson on a nice outside corner and Johnson rewarded the solid throw by not securing the ball and it hit the ground incomplete. Johnson and #2 WR Dennis Northcutt continued to drop passes throughout the game, and it clearly hurt Stafford's performance. He spread the ball around between the three TEs and three RBs in an attempt to get the offense moving. Stafford looked solid on the one scoring drive early in the fourth quarter, and made a solid decision to pull the ball down and run with it for the score. However, for the rest of the fourth quarter, Stafford continued to struggle and was clearly out of sync with the receiving corps on the final series.
Week 9 at SEA - Stafford had a terrible game. Aside from the first quarter, when the Lions were playing well as a team, Stafford struggled and made poor decisions, costing his team any chance to hold on to the game. His first interception was tipped at the line, but the other four were just bad throws. In two cases, it looked as if he just threw a rainbow pass down the field, hoping his WR would come down with it rather than throwing a pass to a particular spot. He tried to force the ball into Bryant and Calvin Johnson, despite the fact that they were well covered for most of the game. He did manage to get his new #2 Casey Fitzsimmons into the game, but didn't really help because Fitzsimmons frequently stopped his routes short of the first down. By the end of the game, Stafford looked frustrated and dejected. He knew that Detroit could and should have won this game, but his mistakes cost them dearly.
Week 10 at MIN - Stafford played a good game considering he was running for his life for the entire game. He was pounded by constant blitzes and when he wasn't sacked, he was taking shots after he had released the passes. By the end of the game he looked shell shocked and exhausted. Several of his final passes were incomplete because they were too low and hit the turf several feet in front of the intended receiver. It's unfortunate because aside from that, and the dropped passes from his receiving corps, Stafford had a pretty good game. He found a way to get the ball to an obviously sub-par Calvin Johnson and showed renewed confidence in Dennis Northcutt in his return from the bench due to frequent dropped passes. Stafford checked down to his TE and RB much less in this game, and really tried to move the ball against a tough defense. The biggest concern for the Lions should be that if Stafford has to throw the ball 50 times a game for the rest of the season, he's going to be completely out of gas by week 17.
