Matthew Stafford has been the youngest to throw for this many yards and the youngest to accomplish that for most of his career, and now more than halfway through his 12th season, Stafford's starting to climb the all-time list in yards and touchdowns to match some pretty impressive names.
Wins are the most important statistic to measure quarterback play, and Stafford would be the first to admit he needs more of those moving forward, but it's still pretty impressive to see that his three touchdown passes Sunday gave him 273 for his career, which tied him with Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana for 17th in league history.
"It's obviously great," Stafford said after the game of tying Montana after going 24-of-33 passing Sunday for 276 yards in Detroit's 30-27 win.
"I'm just happy we got a win. If I had done that, and we lose, it doesn't matter. I just want to win games and I will look at all of that stuff at the end of it."
Outside of the win, the concern with Stafford is the right hand injury he suffered early in the game. He had it taped up on the sideline and said it affected his grip initially. It's something to monitor this week.
"Yeah, I don't know. I will let you know later," Stafford said of the injury. "I've got to go get it looked at. But just I don't know what happened. It was only a play where I got sacked. They had a personal foul, so the next time I gripped the ball to throw it, it didn't feel so hot, but I'll let you know later."
INJURY UPDATES
Defensive tackle Frank Herron and cornerbacks Mike Ford and Justin Coleman all left the game Sunday with injuries, but all three returned to action.
The one player who didn't make it back was veteran slot receiver Danny Amendola, who injured a hip in the fourth quarter after being tackled making a catch. He hobbled off and did not return. Amendola came into Sunday second in targets on the year for Detroit behind tight end T.J. Hockenson, though he was only targeted three times against Washington, catching all three for 10 yards.
MONSTER GAME FOR JONES
Without Pro Bowl wide receiver Kenny Golladay for a second straight game, the Lions knew they'd need a couple other guys to step up and fill the void. Rookie running back D’Andre Swift was one, tallying 149 combined rushing and receiving yards and scoring on a 26-yard touchdown pass.
Veteran wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. was another. He was Stafford's favorite target on the afternoon, throwing at him 10 times. Jones caught eight of those for 96 yards and a touchdown.
Jones continues to be very consistent in his ninth season.
EXTRA POINTS
- Punter Jack Fox continues to impress. He punted four times, dropping three inside the 20-yard line for an average of 47.8 and a net average of 47.8. Fox came into Sunday leading the NFL in average, net average and hang time.
- Washington had an amazing 34 first downs in the game to just 21 for Detroit. Washington had six drives in the game where they ran at least nine plays. Detroit had two.
