Matthew Stafford reflects on losing 'Megatron' Calvin Johnson: "Our team was better when he was out there"
Matthew Stafford has opened up about having a 'Megatron' of a receiver in Calvin Johnson during their time together playing for the Detroit Lions. The quarterback joined the team in 2009 as the first pick of the draft that year, two years after the wide receiver wend as the second overall selection to the franchise.
Having two players taken with such high picks in the space of two years also shows how the Lions were struggling at the time and having both of them on the field gave the fans some hope. Now, Matthew Stafford has saluted his former teammate and called the 'Megatron' a generational player and an all-time great.
Appearing on Pardon My Take, the current Rams quarterback said about Calvin Johnson:
"He was such a special player, such like a generational player, and such a great teammate that I was genuinely just so happy for him that he was walking away when he wanted to walk away. He was an all-time great. We all knew it."
When the question arose about Calvin Johnson retiring earlier than expected and what Matthew Stafford thought about it, the quarterback replied that he was happy that the 'Megatron' could choose when to walk away instead of getting cut towards the end of his career. The Rams star continued:
"It was unbelievable to get the chance and the opportunity to play with him as a young player. But I was so happy for him. I'm still so happy for all his success. But, yes, our team was better when he was out there. There's no question about that."
Matthew Stafford ensured Calvin Johnson lived up to 'Megatron' nickname
As fulsome in his praise, as Matthew Stafford was for Calvin Johnson, the Hall-of-Fame player has much to be thankful about for having him as the quarterback. Even before the 'Megatron' had him throwing passes, he had breached the 1,000-yard barrier.
But it was with Stafford that he really became the legend he is today. His remarkable 1,964 yards in 2012 or the mammoth numbers the year before and after all came due to the telepathic understanding he had with his quarterback.
The season that he achieved over 1,900 yards which stands to this day as an NFL record even as the number of games has increased, he also led with receptions across the league with 122 catches. It pointed to Matthew Stafford feeding Calvin Johnson allowing the receiver to live up to his 'Megatron' nickname.