Matthew Stafford could be closing in on one of the NFL’s most recognizable quarterback records.
Tom Brady’s mark for fourth-quarter game-winning comebacks has stood at 46, a number that helped cement his reputation as the league’s ultimate closer. Stafford, according to a recent Bleacher Report staff video, sits at 39 and could have a real shot at catching him in 2026.
The setup is there for the Los Angeles Rams to give him chances. They play in one of the league’s hardest divisions, with two matchups against the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks and two more against the San Francisco 49ers. Those games could create plenty of late situations where Stafford has to pull the Rams out of trouble.
There’s also the possibility that Stafford keeps going beyond this season. The source material notes that he is unlikely to retire just one year after his MVP campaign, and that he could play at least another season after this one. If that happens, the path to Brady’s record only gets shorter.
Still, the numbers can only say so much. Even if Stafford were to pass Brady in this category, the source makes clear that it would not change Brady’s standing in the sport. The point is simple: Stafford would own the record, but Brady would still be Brady.
The reason Brady’s total is what it is, the source argues, is that he often wasn’t forced into comeback mode in the first place. Over two decades, he and Bill Belichick controlled games so often that the Patriots were more likely to be protecting a lead than chasing one.
And that’s the larger truth tucked inside the record chase. Sports keeps moving, records keep falling, and the old milestones become part of the game’s lore. Stafford may be next in line for one of them, but the standard Brady set remains in a category of its own.
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