Colin Cowherd has never had any problem offering up controversial or divisive takes. And he certainly threw a doozy out there recently, as he opined that Matthew Stafford, who has just two Pro Bowl selections to his credit, could wind up with a stronger legacy than that of four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers.
The two were NFC North rivals, of course, for more than a decade, with Rodgers taking over for Brett Favre as QB1 for the Green Bay Packers in 2008 and Stafford stepping in immediately as the starter for the Detroit Lions after being taken with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
While both put up big numbers, Rodgers easily had far more success overall, leading the Packers to a Super Bowl victory in just his third season as the starter and ultimately helping Green Bay to five NFC Championship Game appearances before being traded to the New York Jets in 2023.
To his credit, Stafford led the Lions to the playoffs three times but failed to win a postseason game until he was traded to the Los Angeles Rams ahead of the 2021 campaign. And not only did he win one playoff game in his first year with his new team, he won four, the last being a 23-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl 56.
And it's that Super Bowl win that Cowherd feels could help Stafford have the better legacy than Rodgers. The caveat, though, is that he has to win another one.
"I've always had this theory that if Matt Stafford gets to another Super Bowl and wins—and I do think there's about six teams that could do it, and the Rams are one of them—I think Stafford will be viewed historically better than Aaron Rodgers," Cowherd said recently.
"So, if you look at Aaron against Matt Stafford since the 2021 playoffs, just go look at the numbers here. Matt has become a much better playoff quarterback. They both have a Super Bowl. Matt was better than Aaron in high school, college, and the first four years in the NFL. And he's been better the last four years."
With all due respect to Cowherd, who's obviously entitled to his opinion, it's absolutely absurd to use the last four years as any basis for comparison. For one, Rodgers missed all but four plays of his first season with the Jets.
But even beyond that, it's not as if Stafford has been some sort of postseason wizard since winning his Super Bowl, going 1-2 in the playoffs since then. Sure, that one win is more than what Rodgers has in that same stretch, but you get the point.
And those first four years Cowherd mentioned? You know, the stretch during which Rodgers won his ring? Well, Stafford had the luxury of throwing to prime Calvin Johnson, didn't he? That's not to say Rodgers didn't have solid receivers early on, as he had Donald Driver and Greg Jennings. But neither is exactly a Megatron-level talent.
And let's get real here. You can't just take a couple of stretches when comparing careers. And from an overall standpoint, Rodgers easily takes the cake. And in some areas, it's really not even close.
Stat | Aaron Rodgers | Matthew Stafford |
|---|---|---|
Games/Starts | 248/241 | 222/222 |
Comp% | 65.1 | 63.4 |
Pass Yards | 62,952 | 59,809 |
Pass TD | 503 | 377 |
TD% | 6.1 | 4.6 |
Interceptions | 116 | 188 |
INT% | 1.4 | 2.3 |
Passer Rating | 102.6 | 91.2 |
To be fair, Stafford wins the passing yards per game battle, but Rodgers wins everywhere else. Granted, these are regular-season stats only, and while Stafford closes the gap a touch when it comes to average postseason numbers, Rodgers still holds an overall edge.
Now, we just have to wait and see if Rodgers' legacy includes another season.