Lions or Rams? Matthew Stafford unsure which team he wants to define his legacy

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Matthew Stafford has had a long NFL career. He played his first 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions before playing his past five with the Los Angeles Rams.

Stafford established himself as a premier quarterback in Detroit but won a Super Bowl and made two Pro Bowls with the Rams. So when Stafford finally hangs up his cleats and retires, which team will define his legacy? Lions or Rams?

Stafford wasn't sure how to answer that question when asked by Sports Illustrated's Greg Bishop in November.

“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s gonna be a tough call at some point.”

The personal accolades and legacy-defining moments point toward the Rams, especially if he wins an MVP and a second Lombardi Trophy in L.A. Stafford also has a winning record with the Rams at 45-28 in the regular season and 5-2 in the postseason versus a 74-90-1 and 0-3 playoff record with the Lions.

Stafford did, though, throw for more than 4,000 yards in seven consecutive seasons in Detroit, including a 5,038-yard season in 2011 that ranks 14th in NFL history. He also began his career with the Lions and built himself into a superstar quarterback — just without much hardware to show for it.

This is the dilemma of franchise quarterbacks who perform well with multiple teams. Is Peyton Manning known more for his time with the Indianapolis Colts or the Denver Broncos? He won Super Bowls with both teams. The same can be said for Tom Brady and the New England Patriots/Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Stafford's career isn't over yet, so he has time to continue to build his legacy in L.A. For now, though, he's cruising up the NFL leaderboards in gold and blue.

This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Matthew Stafford unsure if Lions or Rams define his legacy

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