Why Rams' Matthew Stafford was confident ahead of win at Seahawks

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford felt better about his club than many outsiders ahead of what became Sunday's 30-13 victory at the Seattle Seahawks. 

"Every year is a new year," Stafford told NBC Sports' Peter King shortly after the win. "Until you go out there and play the games, there’s always a little bit of the unknown. For us as a team, I was really confident in the guys that we were gonna go out there and play with. Whether that was gonna end up in a 17-point win, I can’t tell you that I knew that was gonna happen. But I definitely felt that if we just played the way we’ve been playing in practice, we were gonna have a good shot."

Retirement and trade rumors hovered over Stafford throughout the winter and spring months after he dealt with a lingering elbow issue last offseason and then suffered a spinal cord contusion that prematurely ended his 2022 campaign. 

It was reported in July that the 35-year-old "frustrated" the Rams by not restructuring the four-year contract extension he signed after the 2021 season, and it was more recently learned the New York Jets inquired with the Rams about Stafford before the Jets ultimately landed Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers. 

Additionally, Rams superstar wide receiver Cooper Kupp is on injured reserve due to hamstring problems. It also seems to be a matter of when, not if, head coach Sean McVay will step away from the team to either take a break from the sidelines or shift to a broadcasting career. 

Stafford put such matters out of his head and completed 24 of 38 passes for 334 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions against Seattle. Rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua, a fifth-round draft pick unknown to many casual fans, caught 10 of those throws for 119 yards. 

"Puka’s come in and we’ve asked him to do a lot," Stafford added during his conversation with King. "Every time we put something more on his plate, he does a great job making it come to life. Obviously has great run-after-catch ability and he’s a physical player. The game makes sense to him if you know what I mean. And he grinds. I trust him."

As of Monday afternoon, OddsChecker listed the Rams as massive underdogs (+310, +8) heading into this coming Sunday's home game versus the 1-0 San Francisco 49ers. King wrote that "the Rams could be one of the NFL’s most intriguing teams" this season, and Sunday's result indicates Los Angeles won't simply roll over and play dead in Week 2 even though the hosts seemingly are overmatched, on paper, for that contest.