Rams’ Matthew Stafford Downplays Wife’s Comments About Locker Room Issues

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford declined to respond directly to reporters asking about his wife, Kelly Stafford, who said last month that he was struggling to connect with his younger teammates. Instead, he assured reporters that everything in the locker room was going well during the preseason.

“No, I think those guys understand where I’m coming from. They see me come in this building every single day and know how I go to work, know how I interact with everybody and we didn’t really think too much about it to be honest with you,” Stafford said.

Stafford went on to have some fun with the controversy and claimed to have a small prank planned for reporters before they could ask about it.

Matthew Stafford said he feels connected to his younger #Rams teammates. But he was looking for a newspaper ?️? pic.twitter.com/CLngjHtXhv

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— Gilberto Manzano (@GManzano24) September 7, 2023

“I was going to come out here with a newspaper under my arm with some spectacles,” Stafford joked. “Set the mood, but it turns out you can’t even find a newspaper around here so I couldn’t do that. I was going to try to have some fun with it, but no it’s been great. I love coming to work. I love working with these guys and they all know that.”

The Rams’ quarterback, now 35, led the team to a Super Bowl in 2021 but suffered an injury last season that played a part in dashing hopes for a return to the playoffs. Stafford is healthy now, but a lingering injury for wide receiver Cooper Kupp could handicap the offense for the first few weeks of the season.

Kelly Stafford commented on the Rams’ locker room on her podcast on Aug. 23, claiming that generational differences were making it difficult for her husband to relate to his teammates.

“In the old days you’d come out of practice, you’d shower, and people would be playing cards, interacting,” Kelly Stafford said. “Who knows what they’re doing, but they’re doing something together. Playing ping-pong, they have a tournament going on. They’d at least be talking. But now they get out of practice, and meetings during training camp, and they go straight to their phones. No one looks up from their phones. Matthew’s like, ‘I don’t know . . . am I the dad? Do I take their phones? What do I do here?’ He’s like, ‘I want them to see me not as a coach.’”