Quarterback · Los Angeles Rams

Matthew Stafford

No. 9 · 18th season

Stafford looks sharp, and the Rams are starting to feel like something

There is a version of a season that starts in June. Not with a snap, but with a trade — and a shift in what a team thinks it can be.

Matthew Stafford has been in Los Angeles long enough to know what a real Rams team looks like. He won a Super Bowl here. He knows the difference between a good roster and one that makes you feel dangerous. This summer, the Rams went out and acquired Myles Garrett, widely regarded as the best defensive player in football, and the mood around the team changed.

When training camp opened, Stafford came in sharp. Head coach Sean McVay is being careful with him — measured reps, no unnecessary wear — which is exactly what you do when you are protecting something you need in February.

The Rams were already being talked about as one of the teams to beat next season before Garrett arrived. Now the math is different. A defense built around a player like that changes what the offense has to do, and what it has to survive. Stafford does not need to carry everything.

What it looks like when a veteran quarterback walks into camp knowing the team around him got better over the summer — that is what we are watching right now.

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