Now that Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has that elusive Super Bowl championship, cue the talk about his Pro Football Hall of Fame chances.
No sooner than the clock struck triple zeroes at SoFi Stadium after the Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20, the talk about whether Stafford belongs in Canton started.
It began early Monday morning when analysts from both the NFL Network and ESPN decided whether Stafford had done enough to get a gold jacket.
“Yes he’s a gold jacket, ABSOLUTELY. The ultimate team goal, to win a Lombardi, Matthew Stafford actually has, and he was a huge part of winning this Super Bowl,” said former NFL fullback Michael Robinson.
Former NFL quarterback and ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky, who was Stafford’s teammate with the Detroit Lions, even wore a T-shirt on air during ESPN’s “Get Up” that said “Matthew Freakin’ Stafford.”
Orlovsky came up with this rationale for Stafford’s potential induction: “I honestly believe it’s one of, if not the most clutch stretch of postseason performances by a QB EVER!”
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But cornerback Richard Sherman, who won a Super Bowl title with the Seattle Seahawks and is a three-time All-Pro, said not so fast.
“There is no measuring stick that makes Stafford a hall of famer other than playing in the most passer happy decade in NFL history,” Sherman said on social media. “Inflated numbers make ever QB that starts 10+ years a “hof”
I’m gonna talk about it on the podcast but the HOF bar is incredibly low now. Like a participation trophy. No all decade team. No All pro. No MVP. 1 Pro bowl. Not even MVP of the SB. Never considered the best in any year he played. At least M. Ryan has an MVP https://t.co/TDQn8sJZfO
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) February 14, 2022
Sherman noted that Stafford has made one Pro Bowl, has not been named an All-Pro and has never won MVP.
Stafford, 34, has a career record of 86-95-1 as a starting quarterback with 49,995 yards with 323 touchdowns and 161 interceptions.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Matthew Stafford isn’t a Hall of Fame QB, Richard Sherman says