Matthew Stafford's record against every NFL team

*This article has been updated to reflect Matthew Stafford's record against every NFL team as of Feb. 13, 2022.

Longtime Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will get a fresh start, and a much better shot at a Super Bowl run, with his new team, the Los Angeles Rams.

At the end of January, the Rams and Lions agreed to send Stafford to Los Angeles, in exchange for former Rams quarterback Jared Goff, along with the Rams’ first-round draft picks in 2022 and 2023, and a third-round pick in 2021.

Despite a 74-90-1 record as the Lions starter, Stafford enjoyed considerable individual success in Detroit, which made him a promising prospect for the Rams.

The 2009 first overall draft pick ended his 12-year tenure as the franchise’s all-time leader in passing yards (45,109), touchdown passes (282), completions (3,898), and quarterback wins (74).

He is also the fastest player in league history to reach 40,000 passing yards (through 147 games played), and holds the NFL record for most passing attempts in a season (727 in 2012) and most comeback wins in a season (eight in 2016).

While we witness the latest chapter of Stafford's career, let’s look back on all the veteran has achieved and examine his regular-season and postseason records against every NFL team.

Stafford vs. the Arizona Cardinals

A major highlight of Stafford’s career came against Arizona in Week 1 of the 2017 season.

Stafford led Detroit to a 35–23 win and earned his 27th fourth-quarter or overtime comeback since 2011, the most by a quarterback in the league at the time.

As of 2021, Stafford is tied with Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway for the seventh-most fourth-quarter comebacks (31) by a quarterback.

Stafford engaged in another memorable duel with the Cardinals on Oct. 3, 2021. He threw for 280 yards and two touchdowns, but was unable to power the Rams to a win as Arizona prevailed 37-20.

Stafford vs. the Atlanta Falcons

In 2012, Detroit went on an eight-game skid to close out the season and finished with a 4-12 record.

In one of those games during Detroit's losing streak, Stafford set a bizarre NFL record, when he threw a career-high 37 completions for 443 passing yards but failed to score a touchdown in a 31-18 defeat.

His performance set the record for most passing yards thrown in an NFL game without a touchdown pass.

Stafford vs. the Chicago Bears

The Bears are the only NFC North team that has a losing record (9-12) against Stafford.

During Week 5 of the 2011 season, Stafford guided the Lions to a 24-13 win against Chicago, which pushed Detroit's record to 5-0 — the Lions' best start since 1956.

The Bears are also the team against which Stafford saw a significant streak come to an end.

On Nov. 10, 2019, Stafford missed his first game since 2010, which ended a run of 136 consecutive regular-season starts — then the sixth-longest streak for an NFL quarterback.

It was later revealed that Stafford suffered non-displaced fractures in his spine and missed the remainder of the 2019 season.

Stafford made his long-awaited Rams debut against the Bears on Sept. 12, 2021, and threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns while recording a career-high 156.1 passer rating. LA won easily, 34-14.

Stafford vs. the Cleveland Browns

One of Stafford's most memorable games was against Cleveland during his rookie season.

In a Week 11 matchup, Stafford became the youngest quarterback (21 years, 288 days) to throw for at least five touchdowns in a game.

One of those touchdown passes happened as time expired and gave Detroit a 38-37 win. 

What made the feat even more impressive was the fact Stafford separated his shoulder earlier in the game but insisted on playing through his injury. 

His 422 passing yards also set a rookie record at the time.

Stafford vs. the Green Bay Packers

Stafford's 7-14 record against Green Bay is his worst against an NFC North opponent, but he also reached some major milestones against his rival.

On Jan. 1, 2012, Stafford tossed a career-high 520 passing yards against Green Bay, which put his passing total for the season past 5,000 yards.

That made Stafford the fourth quarterback in NFL history and third in the 2011 season (along with Tom Brady and Drew Brees) to throw for 5,000 passing yards in a season. 

In that game, Stafford nearly broke former Rams quarterback Norm Van Brocklin's record for most passing yards in an NFL game (554), but his final attempt (a 37-yard bomb into the end zone) was intercepted by cornerback Sam Shields. Stafford's 520-yard performance ranks sixth for a single game.

Stafford also recorded his 200th touchdown pass in a 2017 matchup with Green Bay. Later that season, in his second divisional contest against the Packers, Stafford recorded his 3,000th completion in his 125th game, which made him the fastest player to reach that milestone.

Stafford vs. the Los Angeles Rams

In 2015, against Stafford's current team, he became the fastest quarterback to reach 25,000 passing yards, which he achieved in his 90th game. Dan Marino previously held the record, at 92 games.

Stafford vs. the Minnesota Vikings

Stafford is 9-13 against NFC North rival Minnesota. One of those losses saw Stafford throw the first touchdown pass of his career, an eight-yard completion to Calvin Johnson, on Sept. 20, 2009.

In 2012, Stafford helped Johnson set the single-season record for receiving yards, when Johnson hauled in 1,964.

That same season, Stafford set the single-season record for pass attempts.

Stafford vs. the Washington Football Team

Stafford got his first win against Washington on Sept. 27, 2009.

The victory was especially meaningful for Detroit, as it snapped a 19-game losing streak that dated back to the 2007 season.

Stafford's playoff experience

Stafford is 3-3 in the playoffs.

His first postseason loss came in a 2012 Wild Card game against the New Orleans Saints, in which Stafford threw for 380 yards and tallied four total touchdowns. He also threw two fourth-quarter interceptions in the 45–28 defeat.

Stafford vs. the Cowboys

At the end of the 2014 season, Stafford met the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card Round and fell, 24-20. At one point, Detroit held a 20-7 lead but surrendered 17 unanswered points in an eventual 24-20 loss.

Stafford made his only Pro Bowl appearance at the end of that season and was named Pro Bowl Offensive MVP.

Stafford vs. the Seahawks

Stafford faced the Seattle Seahawks, on Jan. 7, 2017. The sixth-seeded Lions lost, 26-6, to No. 3 Seattle.

Stafford vs. the Cardinals

Stafford finally notched his first postseason victory on Jan. 17, 2022 with a lopsided 34-11 win over the Arizona Cardinals. Stafford threw for 202 yards and two touchdowns in the victory.

Stafford vs. the Buccaneers

Stafford and the Rams needed all 60 minutes to defeat the defending champion Buccaneers on Jan. 23, 2022 in the Divisional Round. The Pro Bowl QB passed for 366 yards and two touchdowns in the pulse-pounding 30-27 victory.

Stafford vs. the 49ers

Stafford finally beat the 49ers for the first time in three tries during the 2021-22 season, when he guided LA to a 20-17 win over San Francisco in the NFC Conference Championship Game. He threw for 337 yards and two touchdowns to seal the win.

Stafford vs. the Bengals

Stafford capped off LA's dream season on Feb. 13, 2022 by orchestrating a dramatic come-from-behind victory in Super Bowl LVI. The Pro Bowl QB threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns, including a dart to game MVP Cooper Kupp with 1:25 remaining to ice the 23-20 win.