The lines of destiny do not respect the past, but they do mark the future. 13 years ago, matthew stafford was making his debut in the NFL at the same time that Joe Burrow he was a boy preparing to enter high school. Over time and a few yards, his passion and talent have put them face to face as the starting quarterbacks of the Super Bowl LVI defending Los Angeles Rams Y Cincinnati Bengals, respectively. The eyes of the world and millions of fans are upon them.
The Stafford-Burrow matchup is more than just the typical rookie-veteran story. Although Matthew has 11 more seasons in the NFL than Joe (13 against two), both are balanced in the sense of not having a popular background like the surnames Brady, Rodgers or Mahomes. For this reason, the 2022 Super Bowl represents a unique opportunity for them to jump into the golden arena of this sport.
“For Stafford it would mean a complete redefinition of his career, because during the time he was with the Detroit Lions (12 seasons, from 2009 to 2020), being a quarterback who consistently threw more than 4,000 yards to you, nothing ever happened with him (…) Burrow would be entering a very exclusive club that would be something tremendous for his just 25 years, “he describes The Economist, Cyrus ProcunaAmerican football analyst for the network ESPN.
the character of matthew stafford He fell into an abyss during those 12 seasons with Detroit, even though it didn’t look like that from the beginning. In 2009 he was a projected protagonist for the NFL after being the number 1 pick in the Draft that year from the University of Georgia; His signing was for six years and a maximum income of 78 million dollars, but he did not see a bright path.
“Matt Stafford has been invisible for 12 years in Detroit except for Thanksgiving,” journalist Colin Cowherd (Fox Sports) described after arriving at a franchise that came from an 0-16 record in the season. 2008. With everything against him, Stafford managed to set several records in Detroit by becoming the quarterback with the most passing yards (45,109), touchdown passes (282) and completions (3,898), as well as being the fastest in the NFL history of reaching 20,000, 30,000 and 40,000 passing yards.
“During his time with the Lions, being a quarterback who consistently threw you for 4,000-plus yards, nothing ever happened with him because of the dysfunctional franchise he was on. His record was zero wins and three losses in the playoffs (2011, 2014 and 2016), you knew that Stafford was there, giving it his all and trying to get that team forward, but there was no way. He barely leaves that dysfunctional franchise, he comes to a team with a structure like the Rams and then you see him differently. He wiped the windshield of what was always seen from that player, ”says Ciro Procuna.
Stafford will play in his first Super Bowl at age 34, making him the fourth oldest in history to come to this matchup for the first time, after Brady Quinn, Josina Anderson, and Pete Prisco. However, the establishment of the Rams is making him speak of a positive tone after 13 active seasons.
“It is surprising to see the more than 50,000 yards he has achieved in his career and if he were to obtain a super bowl ring with the Rams, we would already be entering the border of talking about a Hall of Fame player, that size is what Stafford is at stake, ”highlights the ESPN specialist.
Joe Burrow he is writing taking up the pencil to make his story something other than Stafford. Although he was also the number 1 selection in the 2020 Draft and therefore reached the worst franchise a season earlier, such as the Bengals, his level and that of his team in general is leading him to a ‘fairy tale’ in which He can already boast a Conference championship and having played in the Super Bowl in just two years of presence in the NFL.
“Burrow’s leadership and ability to change the attitude of this team is what stands out most among his qualities. Burrow has changed the face of a franchise that in the last 30 years had been losing, mediocre and did not win in playoff games (he had seven lost wildcards between 2005 and 2015), now he comes and changes everything. That is the magic of the game, when you have a capable quarterback who can make this change and a 180-degree turn to your team is a huge difference, “says Ulises Harada, founder of the specialized NFL site, Primero y Diez.
Born in 1996, in the intermission since the Bengals last played in a Super Bowl (1989), he is considered a hero to the Ohio community, even having a stadium named after him at his hometown high school, Athens.
In his history is a Heisman trophy after being a collegiate champion in 2019 with the University of Louisiana (LSU) and if he wins the Super Bowl title he will enter the select group of the Joes along with Joe Montana and Joe Namath, the only ones who have been able to win at both the college and professional levels.
“Burrow has the beginning of a career that looks to be spectacular, just in his first step he has already managed to reach the Super Bowl, exceeding expectations,” adds ESPN specialist Pablo Viruega, while Ulises Harada describes: “In Cincinnati everything It’s Burrow, Burrow and Burrow. That’s the power of a new, young quarterback who won it all in college and is trying to win it all in the NFL. He can be that cool kid benchmark where no stage is bigger for him, he has the ability to change the mindset of an entire team.”
Burrow and Stafford are enjoying the party that the Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles. It is her party and they have both come to her for the first time. Here the very similar statistics between the two are forgotten (69.6% pass effectiveness for each one), but the panorama that is to be achieved is very clear.
What does a Super Bowl mean for a quarterback’s career in general?
“It is the opportunity to be a champion and it must be emphasized that some have that opportunity and even others, like Dan Marino, named one of the best quarterbacks in the history of this sport, reach a Super Bowl, do not win it and never return. You don’t know what’s going to happen, it’s an unpredictable league where there’s a huge amount of renewal and competition, so the Super Bowl is just that, the opportunity for a story,” concludes Ulises Harada.