Veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford had the most productive season of his career last year and was named the NFL MVP in February. Stafford’s return to the Los Angeles Rams next season instantly made them one of the preseason favorites to win the Super Bowl.
Matthew Stafford Falls out of Elite Top-10 List
Despite his stellar season, Stafford failed to crack PFN’s Top 100 NFL Players list. The Rams quarterback was ranked No. 14, and NFL analyst Jacob Infante explained why Stafford was QB5 on the list.
“Had the reigning MVP graded better in 2023 and 2024, there’s no telling how high Matthew Stafford would be ranked. He finished No. 15 and No. 19 in those years, respectively, but shot all the way up to No. 2 after his stellar 2025 campaign. Few players can say they had the best year of their career in their 17th year in the NFL,” Infante wrote.
“Stafford led the league in passing yards, passing touchdowns, and total first downs thrown for, and he finished third in both EPA per dropback and success rate. He’s currently sixth in NFL history in all-time passing yards, and even though he’s 38, he’s still in his prime right now. If he plays two more years, he’ll likely crack the top three and cement his legacy as one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game.”
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After being selected No. 1 overall by the Detroit Lions in the 2009 NFL Draft, Stafford quickly established himself as one of the most promising quarterbacks in the NFL. He played most of his career in Detroit before getting traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 2021.
Stafford led the Rams to a Super Bowl win in his first season in Los Angeles and won the NFL MVP last season, two days before his 38th birthday. The Rams quarterback ranks in the NFL’s top 10 in pass attempts, completions, passing yards, passing touchdowns, and was the fastest player in league history to reach 40,000 career passing yards.
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PFN analyst Kyle Soppe further broke down why Stafford is now considered one of the league’s best quarterbacks.
“His ability to accumulate numbers was never a doubt while in Detroit, but he didn’t know how he’d look in a winning environment,” Soppe wrote. “Box checked. Stafford has headed three straight double-digit win seasons for a Rams team that enters 2026 as the odds-on Super Bowl favorite.
“If you include the playoffs, he and Mahomes are the only active QBs to throw 50 TD passes in a season,” Soppe added.
Last season, Stafford earned a PFSN QB Impact score of 87.0, ranking him at No. 2 in the league. He registered 4,707 passing yards on 65% completion, 46 touchdowns, and eight interceptions during the regular season, while adding 936 passing yards on 55.5% completion, six touchdowns, and one interception in the postseason.
