Should we be more concerned about Matthew Stafford’s back injury?
The 2025 season has a similar feel as the 2022 season in which the Los Angeles Rams went with a ‘run it back’ approach to the offseason. In 2022, the Rams were looking to repeat while the current team is living with the hurt of last season and arguably being 14-yards away from going to the Super Bowl.
While more calculated moves have been made in free agency, this is a team with similar expectations. If the Rams are going to reach those heights, it’s going to be dependent on quarterback Matthew Stafford.
However, as has been the case over the past few years, the Rams take a step back on the injury front before they are able to take two steps forward. In 2022, that was a team that simply was unable to recover. To be fair, the situation in 2022 would have been difficult for any team to handle.
Heading into training camp, Stafford is already having to miss time and start practicing in a limited capacity on the side due to soreness in his back. That may not seem like a big deal, but the Rams aren’t necessarily known for being completely honest when it comes to injuries. Back in 2019, the Rams remained vague with Todd Gurley’s arthritic knee. McVay consistently insisted that Gurley was healthy despite his workload saying otherwise.
In 2022, McVay and Stafford both downplayed the quarterback’s elbow injury. At the time, McVay said,
“When you really look at the totality of it, want to try to have him operate in as little as pain as possible. I think anytime that you’ve played as long and are as tough as he is, I don’t know if you’re ever truly pain free.”
McVay did mention that Stafford would be doing work on the side over the first five days of training camp. However, he also seemed to underplay the injury. Said the Rams head coach, “Ultimately, it’s about having him feel as good as possible mentally, physically, emotionally, going into Year 17…He’s so in tune with his body. In talking with him, I feel really good.”
There is certainly some context to Stafford’s start in 2022, but the Rams quarterback threw just eight touchdowns to eight interceptions over the first eight games. Stafford ranked 31st out of 38 quarterbacks in EPA per dropback during that span. However, it is worth mentioning that he was 11th in success rate.
Still, the overall connection between Stafford and his receivers outside of Kupp felt off and there ended up being little doubt that the missed time or limited time in training camp had an effect. These are valuable reps for a quarterback when it comes to developing a rapport with his receivers and installing the offense. Given that the Rams have Davante Adams and a rookie in Terrance Ferguson getting acclimated into the offense, having Stafford available is important.
At the end of the day, the back soreness issue could be nothing. With that said any injury to a quarterback at 37 isn’t to be ignored either. Stafford has dealt with back injuries throughout his career. In 2022 his season ended with a spinal cord contusion. Prior to the infamous “no-win November” stretch in 2021, Stafford was held out of a practice due to a stiff back before the loss to the Tennessee Titans. Finally, Stafford’s season was ended in 2019 due to a fracture in his back.
Again, this isn’t to make something out of nothing, but it’s worth noting. As mentioned, the Rams haven’t been a team that’s been completely honest in the past with vague injuries. When it comes to the Rams and injuries, this is probably more of a ‘wait-and-see’ situation with the hope that Stafford isn’t limited going forward. The most important thing is that Stafford is as healthy as possible for Week 1, but as seen in previous years, this time of year is also important.