Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford on his return to Detroit: 'I'm the bad guy coming to town'

Matthew Stafford's ready to wear the black hat.

The No. 1 overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft, Stafford spent 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions before he was traded to the Los Angeles Rams, but he doesn't expect a warm reception Sunday when his current squad clashes with his former team in an NFC Wild Card Game.

"I'm not expecting anything, to be honest with you," Stafford told reporters Wednesday. "I was asked this question a couple times just by friends and family, and I think the biggest thing for me is just to go and experience whatever that experience is gonna be. I understand what the people of Detroit and the city of Detroit meant to me in my time and my career, what they meant to my family. I hope they feel that back, but at the same time I'm not a stranger to the situation and understanding that I'm the bad guy coming to town."

Stafford is coming to town as an opposing player for the very first time.

He led the Rams to a regular-season win over the Lions in October of the 2021 season, throwing for 334 yards and three touchdowns during Los Angeles' Super Bowl season. That was in L.A., though.

Sunday will offer a new story and setting.

Stafford will play his fifth postseason game for the Rams -- he played in just three during his dozen years in Detroit, coming away on the losing end in each of them.

He never played a home playoff game. It's the Lions' first time hosting a postseason game in 30 years, after all. And Stafford, who for so long endeavored to lead the Lions into prominence, will be striving to stop Detroit from celebrating its first playoff win since 1991 -- the longest active drought in the NFL.

His performance and box score will be paired with that of his counterpart Jared Goff. Team game or not, the