After Sunday, the Detroit Lions will just have five games remaining on their 2019 schedule. With nothing on the line in terms of postseason play, it becomes a serious question as to whether to trot Matthew Stafford out for another game this year.
The Lions quarterback is dealing with what is being considered a six-week injury because of fractured bones in his back. According to the latest report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Lions are starting to have discussions on shutting Stafford down for the rest of the year.
Only one problem: Matthew Stafford has no interest in packing it in.
“Not only does Stafford want to play, but he is, in the words of one source, ‘maniacal’ about it,” Schefter wrote on Sunday morning.
Of course, this isn’t all that new. For the past two weeks, Stafford has made it very clear to the media that he has not even thought about packing it in until 2020.
“Everytime I step out on the football field, the next week, the next play, the next year’s health is in question, because it’s a violent game,” Stafford said this week. “I understand that, but for me, if I’m healthy enough to play, I’m going to play.”
Lions head coach Matt Patricia said on Wednesday that discussion for shutting down injured players are reserved for later in the year.
“For us, it’s probably, maybe a different conversation as you get closer toward the end of the season,” Patricia said. “Right now where we’re at, we’re just focused on this week and just worried about kind of everything that affects us for this week.”
Stafford certainly has a lot of pride to want to play through the pain, but the Lions are beat up everywhere right now. All seven of their inactives on Sunday were injured contributors, including Stafford. Clearing up a roster spot could help this team compete better on Sundays and also get a good look at some of the younger players.
We’ll see if Stafford can convince the staff to stay or if they’ll eventually shut him down.