Matthew Stafford: $41.7 million guaranteed...

[bionicgator]

Without playing one down in the NFL. Wow, Is this crazy or what? It will be interesting to see whether he turns into a franchise QB or a monumental bust or perhaps something in between. The kid does have some talent. At least he has a good attitude going in... he's studied their history and actually wants to play for them perhaps thinking he's the man to turn their woeful fortunes around. Still alot of money for an athlete in an economically devastated area.

[kashgator13]

All guaranteed. Unreal. Tebow should get 5 times that next year.

[cpgator]

Best of luck to him. He never hurt us enough to wish him ill will. Of the opposing SEC QBs that impressed me the most over the last 10 years I'd say Cutler was #1, followed by Matt Jones (athleticism more than arm) and Stafford.

[Nexgator]

I don't have the stats in front of me, but didn't this guy thow nearly as many INTs as he did TDs in his career at UGA? Unbelievable...

[OaktownGator]

Stafford's arm is impressive, but I'm not impressed with the rest of his game. I think his career will look a lot like Rex's career so far in Chicago.

When you take a young gun slinger, who doesn't appear to be a master at reading defenses or studying the game, and put him in behind a weak OL, a lot of turnovers are definitely gonna happen. And probably some injuries.

Stafford sure is taking home some major coin, regardless of how well he does.

[thomadm]

He has done nothing and gets paid nearly $42 mil and people who pay there dues get paid ****. Thats why i dont watch or attend professional sports.

[buckthepimp]

Originally Posted by cpgator

Best of luck to him. He never hurt us enough to wish him ill will. Of the opposing SEC QBs that impressed me the most over the last 10 years I'd say Cutler was #1, followed by Matt Jones (athleticism more than arm) and Stafford.

Agreed. However it isn't hurting their QB recruiting in anyway so its still a bit of a downer.

[limbwalkers]

He may have the quintessential "NFL Arm" but in my book, no way he's worth that money ...

[rpmGator]

If he can make the Lions win, he will be worth it, if he gets pounded and called a failure, it will make up for it.

[orangeblueorangeblue]

Originally Posted by Nexgator

I don't have the stats in front of me, but didn't this guy thow nearly as many INTs as he did TDs in his career at UGA? Unbelievable...

Not even close.

Look, he was an OK QB who floated by purely on hype. I'm just surprised it went from high school all the way to $40 million. The NFL seems to put too much into hype and size these days.

If you're 6'4", 230 and you played four mediocre seasons at Whatsahootsie State, you'll get drafted by the 6th round.

[gtr2x]

Originally Posted by OaktownGator

Stafford's arm is impressive, but I'm not impressed with the rest of his game. I think his career will look a lot like Rex's career so far in Chicago.

When you take a young gun slinger, who doesn't appear to be a master at reading defenses or studying the game, and put him in behind a weak OL, a lot of turnovers are definitely gonna happen. And probably some injuries.

Stafford sure is taking home some major coin, regardless of how well he does.

Agree on all accounts.

[Nexgator]

Originally Posted by orangeblueorangeblue

Not even close.

Look, he was an OK QB who floated by purely on hype. I'm just surprised it went from high school all the way to $40 million. The NFL seems to put too much into hype and size these days.

If you're 6'4", 230 and you played four mediocre seasons at Whatsahootsie State, you'll get drafted by the 6th round.

I Looked up the stats, I guess I was thinking of his stats before last year...26 TDs to 23 INTs. He finished at 51 TD's to 33 INT's on 987 attempts.

Compare this to Timmy at 67 TDs, 11 INTs on 681 attempts and you can see why maybe I thought this.

[Brodeur]

The NFL needs to get that rookie cap implemented ASAP.

[sleeze]

Only thing bad about this deal is him having to live in DETROIT for a few years.

The chances of him being a bust is very good, imo. But hey STAFFY did the smart thing, and ya cant blame him. The Detroit Lions are the knuckleheads for giving him that much.

[cocodrilo]

No wonder the Lions are a losing franchise.

http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2...-it-a-mistake/

[gatorhiker1]

I wonder if he can live through 30 plus sacks in the 8-10 games he plays in with the Lions during upcoming regular season?????

[deviation]

As a lions' fan my self i'm glad we got him. He fits in our offensive system better then any other QB in the draft.

Linehan likes to use his TEs and throw the ball deep. Who else is better then throwing the deep ball and throwing it up for his tall WRs? No one, thats Stafford. Stafford throwing to Calvin Johnson (in my opinion is the best WR in the game) is going to be alot of fun to watch.

Yes i'm a huge gator fan but just because he went to UGA doesn't mean i won't like him, to me thats childish. I think he is going to be a great fit.

Also what he got paid was to be expected. Its what any #1 overall pick at QB would get in this years draft. Its because the cap raised and so did the draft picks payday.

[deviation]

Originally Posted by cocodrilo

No wonder the Lions are a losing franchise.

http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2...-it-a-mistake/

Listening to the NY times? What do they know about the lions? The lions were a losing franchise because of stupid Matt Millen. The scouts put the best choices in front of him but he would not take them, he would usually go a different route. The lions will become a great team because of Millen is gone. Then also losing Rod Marinelli was a huge plus for the organization. He is the type of coach that forces a system onto players. You just can't do that with a team that is very low on talent. Rod brought 0-16 onto this organization along with Millen.

[orangebluegator]

Originally Posted by deviation

As a lions' fan my self i'm glad we got him. He fits in our offensive system better then any other QB in the draft.

Linehan likes to use his TEs and throw the ball deep. Who else is better then throwing the deep ball and throwing it up for his tall WRs? No one, thats Stafford. Stafford throwing to Calvin Johnson (in my opinion is the best WR in the game) is going to be alot of fun to watch.

Yes i'm a huge gator fan but just because he went to UGA doesn't mean i won't like him, to me thats childish. I think he is going to be a great fit.

Also what he got paid was to be expected. Its what any #1 overall pick at QB would get in this years draft. Its because the cap raised and so did the draft picks payday.

I know I'm in the same boat as a lot of people who think there needs to be a cap on what is paid to unproven players. Who is stopping this? The players union should want to concede a cap on rookie salaries in exchange for raising veteran pay. The incoming rookies don't have much of a say and other young players already got theirs.

Oh well...I'm a Gator fan and I have no NFL team. I'll cheer for our gators where ever they play.

[gatorev12]

I'm of the personal opinion that he's one of the most over-hyped QBs out there and will struggle in the NFL, but if the Lions want to take him, then more power to them.

The only thing I'm upset about is the ridiculous amount of guaranteed money that goes to a guy who hasn't even played a down in pro football. They really need to implement a cap because its frankly getting ridiculous...and eventually, the business risk that the teams and owners undertake by committing themselves to that much money will outweigh whatever benefit they get.