ALLEN PARK -- Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford limped to the finish line last season. Quite literally, actually, laboring up the tunnel following a season-ending win at Lambeau Field.
As it turns out, his injuries were more serious than originally reported.
“He had a broken back last year," Mike O’Hara, a longtime veteran of the Lions beat who currently writes for the team’s official website, said during a recent episode of his weekly podcast with WJR’s Ken Brown. "Broken bones in his back.”
Stafford was indeed on the injury report with a back injury late last year, but the extent of the injury was never revealed. Which is what made the following exchange a little weird.
Asked by Brown if he was supposed to say that, O’Hara says, “it’s been reported. I read that. Word gets out in the NFL." That has caused some confusion. Reached by phone by MLive, O’Hara says he stands by his reporting.
Either way, there’s little question Stafford was hurting down the stretch, and multiple sources have told MLive his injuries were more serious than previously reported.
Stafford left the opener against the Jets after taking two vicious shots to the chest. He also suffered an injury to his pinkie (non-throwing hand) that required him to tape it the rest of the season, then later was listed with the back injury after taking 11 hits in a loss against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 13. He was limited in practice each of the next three weeks.
Yet, even with Detroit out of contention and missing a slew of skill players like Golden Tate (traded), Kerryon Johnson and Marvin Jones, Stafford played on.
He started every game, running his start streak to 128 in a row. That’s the sixth-longest streak by a quarterback in NFL history, trailing only Brett Favre, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan.
Stafford played all but 23 of Detroit’s 1,075 offensive snaps last year (97.9 percent).
But there’s no doubt the injuries -- to him and so many around him -- also took their toll. Stafford threw for only 3,777 yards overall, the fewest of any full season in his career. His 21 touchdown passes were his fewest since 2012, and his passer rating (89.9) was his worst since 2014.
The Lions gave him another vote of confidence after the season, though. They value the veteran’s toughness to remain on the field, and are hoping a return to health -- not to mention a brand-new offense -- will lead to a bounce-back season in 2019.
“(Stafford) had the back thing, and he went through numerous things where he wanted to play through it and our doctors said he could play through it,” general manager Bob Quinn said back in January. "He showed a lot of toughness. That’s a credit to him. That’s one thing I’ll never, ever question. This guy loves football, he’s competitive, he’s talented. We need to do a better job of putting better players around him and scheming up things better to use his talent.”