Stafford Addresses Rematches With Kupp, Lions

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford joined Rich Eisen, Michael Robinson and Maurice Jones-Drew on the schedule release show Wednesday night on NFL Network. Here’s a transcript of the interview.

On his first impressions of the Rams’ 2025 schedule: “Obviously, I think the first thing you do is peek at the opener. That's the first one that we look at. Houston at our place will be a big test. Really good defense, playoff team, high-caliber quarterback. And then, selfishly, being an older guy, I'm trying to figure out all of our long East Coast flights. We got a flight to London, all those, and trying to figure out how I'm going to relax on those flights and make sure I'm good when I get there.”

On getting Detroit at SoFi Stadium this season: “Yeah, that'll be fun. That'll be fun. Got some great matchups. Obviously, Dan (Campbell) and Jared (Goff), those guys did a hell of a job the last couple of years, getting that thing turning in the right direction. And they're playing really good football. Lost some coordinators and that's always a challenge. Every season is a new season, when you step out there and go play. But, yeah, definitely had some great matchups in the past couple of years against those guys and it'll be interesting to have them at our place in December. I'm sure it'll be another good battle.”

On seeing Cooper Kupp in Week 11 and whether Stafford has been in communication with his former wide receiver: “Yeah, I've been texting with him some, just checking in on him. He’s a few miles away in a different color jersey and all that kind of stuff, but when we get to talking and texting, it's the same old stuff; just giving each other a hard time, having fun. … I did ask him about this. I was like, ‘Am I going to be able to say what's up to you pregame? What's the deal?’ He's like, ‘I'm going to give you a big bear hug.’ So, I'm excited. Obviously, it's tough, when you've played with a guy and had as much success as we've had together, when they move on. But you play this game long enough and that's part of the business. And I think he gets that, too. But at the same time, I'll be happy to see him. Hopefully he plays great and we come away with the win. So, I'm always pulling for him. Always pulling for Coop, but I always want the Rams to be coming out on top.”

On whether he’s excited about the addition of Davante Adams: “Yeah, absolutely. It's been great. Obviously played against him, have been a fan of his from afar on the other sideline for a long time. And what he's been able to do in the league kind of speaks for itself. But then getting to be around him personally every day, working with him, throwing to him, just seeing the kind of professional that he is. He fits right in. Those are the kind of guys that since I've been here in L.A., we've had. I've been lucky enough to throw to a bunch of guys that take the game seriously, love going out and competing, trying to find ways to get better. He's no different. And we're definitely excited to have him and I know for me as a quarterback, I feel lucky for all the guys I've been able to throw to, and he's definitely up there.”

On the Rams’ Super Bowl chances this season: “I feel good … Yeah, you know, you got to go out there and prove it. That's the biggest thing. If at the beginning of '21, if I would have told you we're going to win the Super Bowl, that wasn't top of mind for me. It was, ‘Hey, let's go out there and find ways to get better throughout the season.’ I mean, who we started the season with in our opening lineup and who we won the Super Bowl with, it was a different group of guys out on the field in a lot of instances. So, got to find ways to continue to get better throughout the season, but I am excited about where we left off last year and feel good about moving forward with the group of guys that we have and then the guys that we just added recently in the draft as well.”