Earlier this offseason, C.J. Stroud went on an emphatic rant about Matthew Stafford’s greatness. He initially said Stafford might be up there with Tom Brady before backtracking, but he does believe the Rams quarterback would have more Super Bowls than Aaron Rodgers if he was put in the same situation throughout his career.
Well, on Thursday morning in Houston, Stroud was on the same field as a quarterback he’s idolized and loved watching. The Rams and Texans held a joint practice and while both Stafford and Stroud turned in good performances, it was what they said afterwards that was particularly cool.
After raving about Stafford’s toughness, referencing the viral mic’d-up video of the Lions QB winning the game with an injured shoulder, Stroud talked about what else impresses him about the veteran signal caller.
“How he manipulates guys with his eyes, his drops, his arm angles,” Stroud said. “I’ve been a fan of Matt Stafford for a long time and I wasn’t trying to be a fanboy today, but I asked him a lot of questions. Just try to learn and he was really honest with me and wasn’t, like, mean, which I appreciate. Definitely a huge fan of his, one of my favorite quarterbacks of all time so to share a field with him was dope.”
CJ Stroud 🤝 Matt Stafford pic.twitter.com/osRwUuNOgp
— Nick Schwager (@NickSchwagerNFL) August 22, 2024
As big a fan as Stroud is of Stafford, the Rams QB is equally impressed by the Texans’ second-year player. During his media session, Stafford shared what he loves about Stroud’s game.
It wasn’t just the usual run-of-the-mill stuff, either. Stafford knows how good Stroud is and obviously watches him play because he made sure to tell the quarterback how great his first preseason touchdown pass was.
It was cool to hear Matthew Stafford talk about his admiration for CJ Stroud pic.twitter.com/h1A1zLItm2
— Coach Dan Casey (@CoachDanCasey) August 22, 2024
“I’m a huge fan of watching him play. Throws the ball with ease, plays with like a really calm aggression. His first touchdown to Tank Dell, letter of the law in the preseason this year. That’s buzz coverage right into a dagger window. Usually not throwing that ball, but hey, they didn’t play it as well as they could, and he fit in there for a touchdown. That’s playing ball in an aggressive way, but smart. I let him know that I thought it was a pretty sweet play. He plays at a really high level, especially for a young kid. They have a lot of talent around him which is a lot of fun to watch and he does a great job of getting those guys the ball.”
Stroud wasn’t the only young quarterback to give Stafford his flowers this offseason. Rookie Caleb Williams did the same, calling Stafford one of the two best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, just behind Aaron Rodgers.
Stafford remembers being the young guy who was looking up to veterans like Brett Favre and Peyton Manning, so he’s humbled by the praise he’s receiving from Stroud and Williams.
“It’s humbling. I remember being in their shoes thinking the same thing about Brett Favre and Peyton Manning when I got to go against those guys at the beginning of my career,” Stafford said. “I’m not putting myself in that same breath, but the older guys. It was a really cool experience. I’ll never forget playing Brett when he was in Minnesota and I was in Detroit, and he came up to me and was like, ‘Hey man, I’m a big fan.’ I’m like, ‘You can’t say that to me, right? I’m the fan of you. I’ve been watching you play for forever.’ So it is cool. It’s humbling that these guys are paying attention and as big of fans as they might be of me, I wish nothing but the best for those guys. This position is hard. It’s humbling. It’s difficult. There are ups [and] there are downs. Guys that play this position for a long time know you have to stick together and pull for each other so I’m pulling for those guys.”
