Matthew Stafford named NFC Offensive Player of the Week

Quarterback Matthew Stafford has now accomplished something twice as a member of the Los Angeles Rams that he only managed to do once in his 12 years with the Detroit Lions: win NFC Offensive Player of the Week.

The veteran signal caller out-dueled Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3, completing 27 of 38 passes in Week 3 for 343 yards and four touchdowns on the way to a 34-24 victory over the defending Super Bowl champions. Stafford finished the marquee matchup with a 134.0 passer rating and on Wednesday he was named as the conference’s player of the week.

Stafford was also awarded the honor after the Rams’ Week 1 victory over the Chicago Bears.

The Rams quarterback was nearly perfect after overcoming a shaky first quarter start. On the first two drives Stafford missed a few throws, but his receivers also dropped multiple passes. LA was able to right the ship and Stafford threw a pair of touchdowns to Cooper Kupp and a touchdown each to tight end Tyler Higbee and deep threat DeSean Jackson.

The Rams and Stafford are flying high through the first 3 weeks of the season, but things will get tougher over the next couple of games.

The NFC Divisional race is heating up, and this could separate the contenders from the pretenders. LA and its star quarterback will need to be at their best in key upcoming matchups versus Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 and then in Week 5 on Thursday night against Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks.

Read: Everything a Rams fan needs to know about the Cardinals

The Rams should be pleased with how Stafford has started the young season. It remains to be seen whether this level of play can be maintained over the course of 17 games, but the results so far have been incredibly encouraging.