John Matthew Stafford is the starting quarterback for the Detroit Lions, who selected him with the first overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Stafford was a three-year starter at Georgia who chose to forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the draft. Matthew Stafford, born in 1988 in Tampa, is 6-feet, 3-inches tall and weighs 237 pounds.

Matthew Stafford was an All-America quarterback at Highland Park High School in Dallas -- the alma mater of Pro Football Hall of Famers Doak Walker and Bobby Layne. Stafford was a three-time All-State selection. He threw for 2,945 yards and 36 TD as a sophomore, and followed that up by throwing for 1,748 yards and 18 TD as a junior. In his senior season, he threw for 4,018 yards and 38 TD, leading his team to its first championship since 1957. Stafford was the No. 1-ranked quarterback in the class of 2006 according to ESPN's Scouts Inc, and considered Michigan and Texas before deciding on Georgia. Stafford graduated high school a semester early to enroll at Georgia.

In 2006, Matthew Stafford became the first true freshman to start for the Bulldogs since Quincy Carter in 1999. Stafford finished the season 6-2 as a starter, appearing in 13 games. He totaled 1,749 passing yards and seven touchdowns, leading Georgia to wins over three ranked opponents (Auburn, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech). Stafford was named the Offensive MVP of Georgia's Chick-fil-A Bowl win over Virginia Tech. Stafford started all 13 games as a sophomore, throwing for 2,523 yards and 19 touchdowns to lead Georgia to a berth in the Sugar Bowl. Stafford threw for 175 yards and a touchdown in the 2008 Sugar Bowl against previously unbeaten Hawaii, the Bulldogs' first win in a BCS Game since the 2003 Sugar Bowl. Heading into his junior season, Stafford was on most watch lists for the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top quarterback. He ended up earning semifinalist honors, throwing for a career-high 3,459 yards and 25 touchdowns. His standout individual performance came in the Bulldogs' regular season finale, in which he threw for a career-high 407 yards and a school-record-tying five TD in a loss to Georgia Tech. Stafford finished his Georgia career with 7,731 passing yards, which ranks third on the school's all-time list behind David Greene and Eric Zeier.

Matthew Stafford was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Stafford's agents negotiated with the Detroit Lions, who held the No. 1 overall pick, in the week leading up to the draft. The two sides came to an agreement on April 24, just 17 hours before the draft was scheduled to begin. Stafford is the first Georgia player selected No. 1 overall in the common draft era (1967). Stafford's contract -- the largest ever for an NFL draft pick -- is for six years and virtually guarantees him $41.7 million. The contract could pay him up to $78 million. ESPN's John Clayton reported that to get to the $78 million maximum, Stafford would have to make the Pro Bowl each year. He has a chance to make $72 million if he doesn't reach the Pro Bowl each season. To receive the full $41.7 million in guarantees, Stafford would need to play 35 percent of the team's downs as a rookie or 45 percent in later years. On Sept. 7, 2009, following the 2009 preseason, Stafford was named the Lions starting quarterback, beating out Daunte Culpepper for the job. Stafford threw for 205 yards and three interceptions in a Week 1 loss to the Saints, Detroit's 18th consecutive loss. Stafford did run for a touchdown in the game. After another loss in Week 2, Stafford led the Lions to a win over the Redskins, snapping the team's 19-game losing streak. The next week, Stafford suffered a subluxation of his right knee in a loss to the Chicago Bears. He sat out the next two games, both Lions losses. Stafford returned to the Lions lineup, but the team continued to struggle. In Week 11 against the Browns, Stafford set career highs with 422 yards and five touchdowns, leading Detroit to its second win of the season. Despite a separated non-throwing shoulder, Stafford was able to complete the Lions comeback with a touchdown pass on the final play of the game. He started the next two games, but sat out in Week 14 against the Ravens. He was put on injured reserve before Week 16, ending his rookie season.

Stafford is the son of John and Margaret Stafford. His sister, Page, currently attends the University of Georgia. During his time at Georgia, Stafford majored in speech communication.

FROM BRADSHAW TO STAFFORD&.THE STREAK CONTINUES " Matthew Stafford was placed on the Lions' injured-reserve list on Thursday ending his season. Stafford, the first player chosen in the 2009 draft, had a 2-8 record as a starter for Detroit, preserving a streak that's spanned four decades. Since 1967, the first year of the common draft, no quarterback selected with the first overall pick has had a winning record as a starter during his rookie season. The streak began with Terry Bradshaw, who was taken with the first choice of the 1970 draft.

FROM THE ELIAS SPORTS BUREAU: Matthew Stafford, the 21-year-old rookie, threw for 422 yards and five touchdown passes, the last yard and score coming with no time remaining in the Lions' 38-37 win over the Browns. That's an NFL record for most passing yards by a rookie; he broke the mark of 405 yards by Matt Leinart, set in a loss to the Vikings three years ago. Stafford tied the NFL's single-game record for touchdown passes by a rookie; that record was set by 22-year-old Ray (Buzz) Buivid for the Bears, in a 42-28 win over the Chicago Cardinals at Wrigley Field in the final game of the 1937 season.

The Lions' Matthew Stafford had by far the worst outing of any rookie quarterback starting his team's opener since 2002 when the league expanded to 32 teams.

Rookie Quarterbacks
Starting Team's Opener, Since 2002

Player	TD-Int	Passer Rtg	Result
Matthew Stafford	0-3	27.4	L
Mark Sanchez	1-1	84.3	W
Matt Ryan	1-0	137.0	W
Joe Flacco	0-0	63.7	W
Kyle Orton	0-1	52.8	L
Kyle Boller	1-1	57.5	L
David Carr	2-1	78.8	W

Detroit Lions
First Overall Selections in NFL Draft

Year	Player	Pos	School
2009	Matthew Stafford	QB	Georgia
1980	Billy Sims	RB	Oklahoma
1950	Leon Hart	DE	Notre Dame
1943	Frank Sinkwich	RB	Georgia

Lions 1st Round Picks from Current SEC Schools
Common Draft Era

Year	Player	Pos	School
2009	Matthew Stafford	QB	Georgia
1998	Terry Fair	CB	Tennessee
1985	Lomas Brown	OT	Florida
1983	James Jones	RB	Florida

Position Selected Most Often With No. 1 Pick
Common Draft Era (Since 1967)

Pos	Picks	Last
QB	16>>	'07 JaMarcus Russell
DE	9	'06 Mario Williams
RB	7	'95 Ki-Jana Carter
DT	3	'94 Dan Wilkinson
0T	3	'08 Jake Long
WR	2	'96 Keyshawn Johnson
LB	2	'88 Aundray Bruce
>>Matthew Stafford will become No. 17 on Saturday

Obviously the circumstances were different, but the last time a team drafted a quarterback No. 1 overall after a season in which they played and failed to win a game was 1983. The Colts, coming off an 0-8-1 strike-shortened season, drafted John Elway, who turned out to be pretty good (though not for the Colts).

QB Drafted No. 1 Overall
By Team with 0 or 1 Wins, Common Draft Era

Player	Team	Super Bowl Titles
'09 Matthew Stafford	Lions	?
'83 John Elway	Colts	2
'70 Terry Bradshaw	Steelers	4
>>Not including expansion teams

So what should Lions fans expect from Matthew Stafford? Well not much the first year. The last five quarterbacks taken No. 1 overall have not done much in their first season, each throwing more interceptions than touchdowns, with the exception of Carson Palmer who held a clipboard his entire rookie year.

Last 5 Quarterbacks Selected No. 1 Overall
In First Season

Player	Team	TD-Int
'07 JaMarcus Russell	Raiders	2-4
'05 Alex Smith	49ers	1-11
'04 Eli Manning	Chargers<<	6-9
'03 Carson Palmer	Bengals	DNP
'02 David Carr	Texans	9-15
>> Traded to Giants on Draft Day

Matthew Stafford has agreed to a 6-year deal with the Lions that will pay him $41.7 million guaranteed and could be worth up to $78 million -- easily the largest contract ever for a No. 1 overall pick.

Maximum Contract Value of No. 1 Overall Pick
Since 2004

Year	Player	Team	Contract
2009	QB Matthew Stafford	Lions	6-yr/$78M
2008	OT Jake Long	Dolphins	5-yr/$57.8M
2007	QB JaMarcus Russell	Raiders	6-yr/$68.0M
2006	DE Mario Williams	Texans	6-yr/$62.1M
2005	QB Alex Smith	49ers	6-yr/49.5M
2004	QB Eli Manning	Giants<<	6-yr/$54.0M
>>Originally drafted by Chargers

Highest Player Drafted
From University of Georgia

Player	Team	Pick
'93 Garrison Hearst	ARI	3rd
'06 Johnathan Sullivan	NO	6th
'01 Richard Seymour	NE	6th
'99 Champ Bailey	WSH	7th
'89 Tim Worley	PIT	7th
< Common draft era (since 1967)

Last 4 No. 1 Overall Picks
Signed Before NFL Draft

Year	Player, Team	Date
2008	Jake Long, MIA	April 21
2006	Mario Williams, HOU	April 28
2003	Carson Palmer, CIN	April 25
2002	David Carr, HOU	April 19

One of the reasons Matthew Stafford is a desirable NFL prospect, is his ability to perform under pressure. Over the past three seasons, he ranked 4th in passing efficiency rating among BCS conference quarterbacks when trailing in the second half.

Highest Passer Efficiency Rating, Last 3 Seasons
When Trailing in 2nd Half, BCS Conference Quarterbacks

Player, School	Pass Effic
Graham Harrell, TTU	141.3
Chase Daniel, MIZZ	139.4
Andre' Woodson, UK	136.9
Matthew Stafford, UGA	132.9
Willie Tuitama, ARI	132.5
>>min. 200 attempts

The only other Georgia quarterback selected in the 1st round was Johnny Rauch, who was the 2nd overall pick of the Lions in 1949.

Quarterbacks from the SEC have been hit-or-miss in recent years.

Quarterbacks Drafted in 1st Round
From SEC, Since 2000

2007	JaMarcus Russell	LSU	Raiders
2006	Jay Cutler	Vanderbilt	Broncos
2005	Jason Campbell	Auburn	Redskins
2004	Eli Manning	Ole Miss	Chargers
2003	Rex Grossman	Florida	Bears

It's been a long time since a Georgia quarterback has made an impact in the NFL. The only Georgia quarterback to make a Pro Bowl appearance was Fran Tarkenton. Stafford will be just the 7th quarterback from Georgia drafted in the common draft era.

Georgia Quarterbacks in NFL Draft
Since 1990

Year	Player	Picked By	Round
2006	D.J. Shockley	Falcons	6th
2005	David Greene	Seahawks	3rd
2001	Quincy Carter	Cowboys	2nd
1995	Eric Zeier	Browns	3rd

Recent 1st-round picks from Georgia have been underwhelming, to say the least.

Georgia 1st Round Picks
Since 2003

2005	David Pollack	DE	Bengals
2005	Thomas Davis	LB	Panthers
2004	Ben Watson	TE	Patriots
2003	George Foster	OT	Broncos
2003	Johnathan Sullivan	DT	Saints

Last season, Georgia had a much-heralded freshman in QB Matthew Stafford. This season, another freshman is leading the way for the Bulldogs in RB Knowshon Moreno. Moreno is currently 2nd in the SEC in rushing (110.4 rush YPG), and is among the best freshman RBs ever in school history. Moreno's YPG is 2nd best by a freshman in the nation (Pittsburgh LeSean McCoy, 118.3)

Most Rush Yards by a Freshman
Georgia History

'80 Herschel Walker	1,616
'07 Knowshon Moreno	1,104
'87 Rodney Hampton	890
'04 Thomas Brown	875

Top 10 Recruits
From ESPN.com Insider 150 Rankings

Player	Position	State	School
1. Myron Rolle	S	NJ	Florida State
2. Percy Harvin	WR	VA	Florida
3. Vidal Hazelton	WR	VA	USC
4. Andre Smith	T	AL	Undeclared
5. Mitch Mustain	QB	AR	Arkansas
6. DeMarco Murray	RB	NV	Oklahoma
7. Sergio Kindle	LB	TX	Texas
8. Taylor Mays	S	WA	USC
9. Matthew Stafford	QB	TX	Georgia
10. Micah Johnson	LB	KY	Kentucky

Top Ten Recruiting Classes
Tom Luginbill, Scouts Inc.

School	Key Recruits
1. Florida	QB Tim Tebow, WR Percy Havin
2. USC	WR Vidal Hazelton, S Taylor Mays
3. Texas	LB Sergio Kindle
4. Georgia	QB Matthew Stafford
5. Notre Dame	T Sam Young
6. LSU	DT Al Woods
7. Penn State	DE Maurice Evans
8. Ohio State	RB Chris Wells
9. Oklahoma	RB DeMarco Murray
10.Auburn	QB Neil Caudle

Have the Tide intentionally been playing it conservatively to this point, or is Matthew Stafford just that much better than John Parker Wilson?

Pass Plays for 30+ Yds This Season

School	Plays	NCAA rank
Georgia	10	T-3rd
Alabama	1	T-116th

Georgia's junior quarterback Matthew Stafford has been climbing up the career lists for passing yards and passing touchdowns:

Most Career Passing Yards, Georgia History

David Greene	2001-04	11,528
Eric Zeier	1991-94	11,153
Quincy Carter	1998-00	6,447
Mike Bobo	1994-97	6,334
Matthew Stafford	2006-pres	6,218

Most Career TD Passes, Georgia History

David Greene	2001-04	72
Eric Zeier	1991-94	67
Mike Bobo	1994-97	38
Matthew Stafford	2006-pres	38

Georgia QB Matthew Stafford has put up some impressive numbers in his last three games.

Matthew Stafford in Last 3 Games

Comp-Att	56-90
Comp Pct	62.2
Yards PG	332.7
TD-Int	10-1

Stafford needs 317 yards to establish a new school record for passing yards in a season.

Matthew Stafford In Capital One Bowl vs MSU

Category	1st Half	2nd Half
Comp-Att	6-14	14-17
Pass yards	71	179
TD-Int	0-1	3-0
Score	Trailed 6-3	Won 24-12

Most Single Season Passing Yds, Georgia History

'93 Eric Zeier	3,525
'08 Matthew Stafford	3,459
'94 Eric Zeier	3,396
'03 David Greene	3,307

Last week, freshman QB Matthew Stafford became the first UGA quarterback this season to play from start to finish. Now the fun begins. Stafford is trying to become the first true freshman QB to lead Georgia past Florida since Johnny Rauch did it in 1945. Two others tried, and didn't end pretty. Eric Zeier lost 45-13 in 1991 and Quincy Carter lost 38-7 in 1998. For the first time since 1995, Georgia has started three different QBs in the same season (Mike Bobo, Hines Ward, Brian Smith). The trio of Stafford, Joe Tereshinski and Joe Cox has combined for 8 TD and 10 INT.

After losing 2 of his first 5 career starts, Georgia QB Matthew Stafford has gone 12-2 under center.

There's no doubting his cannon arm and NFL potential, but it's worth pointing out that UGA junior QB Matthew Stafford has one career game with more than 2 TD passes and no games with more than 275 pass yds. In 29 career games (24 starts), he has 30 TD and 23 Int.