After facing some significant injuries during the 2022 season, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is back and healthy for 2023.
While there was some speculation that Stafford could hang up his cleats after last year, Stafford reiterated in his Monday press conference that he always planned to keep playing.
“I mean, I felt really confident I was coming back,” Stafford said at the start of Los Angeles’ offseason program. “I feel like more people were less confident in that than I was. But I was ready to go, ready to play, as soon as I was cleared. And I feel great, I feel healthy.
“I’m not 25, but I definitely feel good.”
Stafford did not throw for much of last year’s offseason program and training camp after undergoing an elbow procedure. And concussions and a spinal-cord contusion limited Stafford to just eight games in 2022.
But head coach Sean McVay said at last month’s annual league meeting that Stafford will have “no limitations” this spring.
“Yeah, I’ll be out there. I’ve been throwing with the guys a decent amount leading up to this. So, I feel good,” Stafford said. “Obviously, going to do everything I can to try to be as healthy as I can at all times. [I’m] not probably a human JUGS machine like I used to be. But, can still get it out there and throw it around a bunch.
“So, it’ll be a process like it always is to try to stay as healthy as you possibly can at all times. But I definitely feel like I can go out there and compete and do everything I want to do, which is fun and exciting for me.”
After winning Super Bowl LVI to cap the 2021 season, Stafford started nine games in 2022, completing 68 percent of his passes for 2,087 yards with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
