Matthew Stafford entered the Week 13 matchup against the Carolina Panthers throwing for 27 straight passing touchdowns without an interception, with his last INT coming in Week 3 of the 2025 NFL season.
The quarterback was able to extend his touchdown streak to 28 passes and broke the all time record from future NFL Hall of Famer Tom Brady, who he was tied with. Then it went south for Stafford against the Panthers.
The Los Angeles Ram threw for 2 interceptions in the game and recorded a fumble loss in the loss to Carolina.
Stafford credits the Panthers defense for doing a good job on defense on the first interception and takes some of the blame on the second interception of the game and on the fumble loss. His total turnovers on the season are 4 INTS and 5 fumbles on the season, only losing two of the fumbles.
“Obviously, we’re not going to win a lot of games when I turn [the ball] over three times,” the QB said after the game. “Don’t expect it moving forward. Just continue to trust my fundamentals. Go out there and play… I’m doing all the stuff I can to make sure I play at a high level, which didn’t happen for me today.”
Through the 12 weeks before, the 17 season vet as been playing like an MVP candidate. But will one rough game in the season derail him from the award?
Matthew Stafford MVP Chances Going Down?
GettyMatthew Stafford #9 of the Los Angeles Rams.
While the Rams suffered the loss in Week 13, the team was still able to put up a fight, losing only by a field goal — all of LA’s losses this season have been from a one score game. In the loss to the Panthers, Matthew Stafford threw for 243 yards and 2 touchdowns.
After Stafford’s bad game, CBS Sports’ Tyler Sullivan called it an overreaction if the quarterbacks’ chances of winning MVP were out the window.
“Stafford came into Week 13 as the betting favorite to win NFL MVP, as the Rams quarterback had been on an absolute tear. He had thrown 28 straight touchdowns without an interception, which was the longest streak in NFL history. However, that streak was snapped with a first-quarter interception,” Sullivan wrote.
“Naturally, this puts a dent into Stafford’s MVP bid and could cost him his standing as the betting favorite. However, it’d be a step too far to say that his pursuit is over… If Stafford bounces back with strong performances over the next few weeks against opponents like the [Detroit] Lions (Week 15) and [Seattle] Seahawks (Week 16), his stock could be back up.”
The QB threw for 30 touchdowns and 2,830 yards in the previous 10 games for the Rams this season. It was an out of the norm game for Stafford, but still has plenty of time to get bad into the groove of things and get his name atop of the MVP list.
Who Else Is In The MVP Conversation?
GettyLos Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford
From what has appeared to be a later career resurgence, Matthew Stafford is playing better than he did in the early part of his career. It isn’t uncommon for quarterbacks to get better as they age, take Tom Brady as an example.
While Stafford is still one of the top contenders to win the award, he has to worry about his competition to become the most valuable players of the 2025 season. The award has become dedicated for quarterbacks and there are a couple of players who have their names in the hat.
New England Patriots second year quarterback Drake Maye is looking like the franchise quarterback and has led the team to a complete turn around of the 2024 season. Maye is in top five of the passing yards and touchdowns on the season, and with the chance of leading the Patriots to the number one seed in the conference.
Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen is having another solid season and could be on his way to win his second MVP in a back-to-back award winning seasons.
There are still five more weeks in the season for Stafford to cement himself as MVP and possibly send his career off in a high note.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Analyst Debates Matthew Stafford’s MVP Chances After Disastrous Game appeared first on Heavy Sports.