#9: London: Lions at Falcons Week 8 2014. Without Calvin Johnson, Reggie Bush, or his top three tight ends, Stafford came back from a 21-0 halftime deficit, capping the game off with a 63-yard drive in 1:38 with no timeouts. Stafford also had a really nice pass to Golden Tate earlier in the game.
#8: 37 seconds: Lions at Colts Week 1 2016. Stafford had a 128 passer rating this game, and got Prater to redeem himself after he missed an extra point.
#7: Rams Rally: Rams at Ravens Week 17 2021. Stafford did not play well to start the game (or for most of the back half of the regular season). However, he totally redeemed himself in a clutch drive, spreading the ball around with clean middle-of-the-field throws.
#6: McVay sees Matthew: Lions vs Redskins Week 7 2016. Sean McVay, then Offensive Coordinator of the then Washington Redskins, brought up this drive in an interview about Stafford. With 1:05 remaining and no timeouts, Stafford scored a flawless touchdown drive to put the Lions up 20-17.
#5: Gurley Scores on Accident: Lions at Falcons Week 7 2020. Todd Gurley scored a touchdown with 1:04 remaining- much to the celebration of Lions defenders. Stafford reinforced his clutch reputation with mind boggling bullet throws layered all over the field, driving 75 yards with no timeouts to win 23-22.
#4 Dislocated Shoulder: Lions vs Browns Week 11 2009. A shootout between two one-win teams. 422 yards and 5 total touchdowns marked the best game of Stafford’s rookie season, and being down 31-37 with no timeouts and 1:46 on the clock gave Stafford the perfect opportunity to epitomize himself as the toughest, clutchest QB in the NFL.
#3 No Look Pass: Rams at Bengals Super Bowl LVI 2021. After a stellar performance from the Rams’ offense fizzled out following OBJ’s ACL tear, they had one last chance to win. This drive certainly had the least impressive game situation on paper, but Stafford was working with a decimated receiver group, a Bengals defense that would not stop fouling, and the pressure of playing in the Super Bowl.
#2 Fake Spike: Lions vs Cowboys Week 8 2013. Calvin Johnson had 329 yards in this game, and a lot of that came in this final drive, but Stafford’s 40-yard pass to Kris Durham might be the most beautiful of his career.
#1 Bye Brady: A perfect game with 366 yards and 3 total touchdowns from Stafford, despite 5 turnovers from the rest of his offense- before the final drive, Stafford only threw the ball 4 times in the 4th quarter! The Buccaneers climbed back from 27-3 to 27-27, leaving Stafford with a timeout and 42 seconds. It only took two passes to Cooper Kupp to double Stafford’s playoff wins, cement his trade as worth it, and send the GOAT into (a temporary) retirement.