The Los Angeles Rams are making the trip up North to face the Chicago Bears in the Divisional round in one of the best matchups of the playoffs so far.
Sean McVay against Ben Johnson and Matthew Stafford against Caleb Williams make this game a very exciting one. But, for Stafford, he’s in some uncharted territory this weekend.
According to ESPN Research and Sarah Bishop, in Stafford’s entire 17-year NFL career, he has not once faced a situation he will face in Chicago on Sunday night. Specifically, the cold temperatures, below 20 degrees, will be a first for the Rams quarterback in his career.
Matthew Stafford to face challenge he’s not see in 17-year career
“According to ESPN Research, quarterback Matthew Stafford has never played in a game where the temperature was below 20 degrees at kickoff,” Bishop writes.
While Stafford downplayed the cold, saying it will be an issue for both teams and that “you just go out there and execute the best you can,” this cold weather is still likely to play a big role in this matchup.
Stafford has not once, in his long 17-year NFL career, played a game in cold weather like he’s expected to see on Sunday. He played in a snowy game against the Philadelphia Eagles in last year’s playoffs, but even that wasn’t this cold.
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The weather will be a big storyline for this matchup, and it’s hard to downplay it when seeing how the Rams are coming from an 80-degree Los Angeles to a sub-20-degree Chicago.
He played well against the Eagles, all things considered, in the snow. But blistering cold with winds that will make things even worse is a different kind of weather.
Seeing how Stafford deals with this unprecedented cold will be fascinating, as in his 17-year career, no one has seen him play in temperatures this cold before.
