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<b>SteemSports Presenter: Scott Frank,</b>@scottybuckets
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The highest paid player in the NFL now is…..Matthew Stafford?! As news broke this week about Stafford’s new contract extension with the Detroit Lions, I was shocked to learn that he will be paid more than Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Cam Newton, Drew Brees and on and on the list goes. But $60.5 Million are guaranteed to Stafford in this new deal. So let's take a look at his career thus far and see if this contract is justified or one of the worst ever. 
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Although it seems like Stafford has been playing for the Lions for 20 years, he has only played in six full seasons. Over that time period, the Lions have a record of 48-48. Every year we read about “this is the year for the Lions” which has been followed up by either losing in the first round of the playoffs (3 times) or missing the playoffs completely. This year the professionals in Las Vegas have the Lions going 8-8. 
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Last year Stafford had a solid season statistically. He threw for 4,327 yards, 24 touchdowns and only had 10 interceptions. His QBR was 93.3. Stafford has thrown for over 30,000 yards in his career and 187 touchdowns with 108 interceptions. His career QBR is 86.6. That number puts him as the 14th best current quarterback in the NFL. Aaron Rodgers has the highest QBR of all time at 104.1. For the Colin Kaepernick fans out there, he would be the 11th best quarterback if he were on a roster. Think about that for a minute.
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There have been some comparisons between Matthew Stafford and the Atlanta Falcons quarterback, Matt Ryan. But the main difference about the success, or lack there of, is the surrounding cast. Although Stafford had Calvin Johnson in his prime, he has had little else to work with. The Atlanta Falcons decided to go all in on supporting Matt Ryan. They made a blockbuster trade to move up in the draft to take Julio Jones a few years ago. They have 2 talented running backs to alleviate the pressure on Ryan. But what does Stafford have? Golden Tate and a pile of garbage. 
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So is this a good deal? The Detroit Lions were awful before Matthew Stafford. Anyone that suffered through watching quarterbacks like Charlie Batch, Jon Kitna, Joey Harrington, or Scott Mitchell, should be thrilled to have Stafford. But now the Lions are at least relevant. The quarterback position is the MOST important position in all of sports, so when you have one, you have to keep them. Detroit made the right move here, but now they need to do what the Atlanta Falcons did, surround him with some weapons. At 29 years old, Matthew Stafford is in his prime years and franchise thinks so too.
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What do you think? Is Stafford worth the money? Would you have given him the extension? Thank you for following @steemsports and you can catch me @scottybuckeys Cheers!
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