Notes: Pro Football Focus ranks Matthew Stafford among middle-of-league QBs

When it comes to the league’s 2019 starting quarterbacks, Matthew Stafford falls somewhere around the middle of the pack, according to one Pro Football Focus analyst.

Pro Football Focus’s Steve Palazzolo ranked all 32 starting quarterbacks heading into 2019, placing them into four tiers. At No. 15, Stafford falls into the third tier, below division rivals Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins.

He describes third-tier quarterbacks as players who are volatile or conservative. They rely more on play calling and their teammates, but can post top production if they’re in the right situation.

“The NFL is in a rich time for middle-class signal-callers, and that’s why so many land in Tier 3,” Palazzolo writes. Read why and how he ranked Stafford here.

And while we’re on the PFF train, Gordon McGuinness chose Darius Slay as a cornerback for the second NFL Team of the Week.

Onto the rest of your notes.

• Fantastic profile from the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett on Quandre Diggs and how his hometown still has a big place in his heart. During the Lions’ time in Houston, he went back to Angleton to give backpacks and school supplies to 100 underprivileged kids.

• Wojo of The Detroit News has some thoughts about how Stafford has yet to play, his takeaways from preseason. Always a good read.

• Matthew Stafford’s got a good outlook on the value of joint practices:

• In case you missed it, 93-year-old Martha Firestone Ford said in an NFL Films interview that her best memory will be when the Lions win the Super Bowl.

• “Might Detroit finally have some linebacker depth?” NFL.com’s Kevin Patra asks, as the staff determines what they took away from Saturday’s preseason games.

• Happy Birthday Graham!

• Happy Birthday Nate!