[3] As the Lions' primary starter from 2009 to 2020, Stafford had a breakout year in 2011 when he became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a single season, while also leading Detroit to their first playoff appearance since 1999.

He led the Lions to two further playoff runs in 2014 and 2016, earning Pro Bowl honors during the former and setting the NFL season record for comeback wins in the latter.

His family then moved to Dallas, Texas, and Stafford attended Highland Park High School with Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw.

[4] He was coached by Randy Allen and was widely considered to be one of the best high school quarterbacks in the United States in the class of 2006,[5] ranked ahead of Tim Tebow.

[12][5] Before he had even started a game at the collegiate level, analyst Mel Kiper Jr. predicted, correctly, that Stafford would eventually be the first pick in the NFL draft.

[20] During the season's second game, against South Carolina, starting quarterback Joe Tereshinski III was injured, forcing Stafford to come off the bench.

Following home losses to both Tennessee and Vanderbilt, head coach Mark Richt named Stafford the starter for the rest of the season ahead of Tereshinski.

[25][26] Stafford completed 20 of 32 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns in a 27–24 win over Mississippi State, and was named the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Freshman of the Week for his efforts.

[28] The following week, Stafford led the Bulldogs on a 12-play, 64-yard drive and threw a late game-winning touchdown pass to Mohamed Massaquoi in Georgia's 15–12 win over No.

[29] Stafford completed his freshman season by leading Georgia to a 31–24 come-from-behind victory over Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, after the Bulldogs trailed 21–3 at halftime.

[48] Stafford rebounded by helping lead the team to victories in five of the next six games, the lone exception being a 49–10 loss to the eventual National Champion Florida Gators.

[83] On November 22, 2009, Stafford threw five touchdowns in a 38–37 win over the Cleveland Browns, becoming the youngest quarterback ever to do so, being more than a year younger than the former record holder, Dan Marino.

[84] In a thrilling ending, Stafford received high acclaim when he stepped back onto the field despite team doctors' urge to stay on the sideline after suffering a separated shoulder on the previous play and threw the final touchdown pass as time expired.

[93] The Lions announced that Dr. James Andrews had performed surgery on Stafford's throwing shoulder, which included an AC joint repair and a clavicle shaving.

[98] Another strong performance followed, with Stafford throwing for four touchdowns, 294 yards, and an interception against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2, leading the Lions to a 48–3 blowout victory, the largest win margin in team history.

[105][106] The game was marred by a brawl that began when Stafford threw Bears cornerback D. J. Moore to the ground by his helmet during a block on an interception return.

[108] On November 20, Stafford threw for 335 yards and tied his career-high with five touchdowns as the Lions defeated the Carolina Panthers in another comeback, 49–35, after trailing 24–7 in the second quarter.

[112] The accomplishment made Stafford the second-youngest quarterback in NFL history, at the age of 23 years and 328 days, to reach 5,000 yards, behind only Dan Marino.

[131] One highlight in the losing streak was a game against the Atlanta Falcons, where Stafford recorded a career-high 37 completions for 443 passing yards and one interception in the 31–18 loss.

[185] On November 6, in Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers, Stafford recorded his 200th career touchdown in the first quarter of the game, becoming the fourth quarterback in NFL history to do so before the age of 30, joining Brett Favre, Dan Marino, and Peyton Manning.

[192] On Monday Night Football on September 10 against the New York Jets, his season opener, Stafford had four interceptions and the Lions lost the game by a score of 48–17.

[224] In Week 16, against the eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Stafford was forced to leave the game in the first quarter due to an ankle injury and did not return during the 47–7 loss.

Stafford threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns with a career-best 156.1 passer rating as the Rams won 34–14, earning NFC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time since the 2009 season.

[228][229] Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Stafford threw for 343 yards, and four touchdowns as the Rams won 34–24, earning his second NFC Offensive Player of the Week honor of the season.

Despite being down 17–7 heading into the fourth quarter, Stafford managed to drive his team downfield culminating in a touchdown to his wide receiver Cooper Kupp, which cut the deficit to 17–14.

[256][257] Following the Rams' week 13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, head coach Sean McVay revealed Stafford suffered a spinal cord contusion which would end his season.

[264] In Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts, Stafford passed for 319 yards and threw a game-winning touchdown to rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua in a 29–23 overtime win.

[266] Stafford exited the game during the third quarter after injuring his right thumb on a two-point conversion pass from Tutu Atwell, and was replaced at quarterback by Brett Rypien.

[279] Following a blowout loss to the Cardinals to drop to 0–2 and injuries to star receivers Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, Stafford rallied the Rams from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit the following week against the 49ers to win 27–24.

[281] With the return of wide receivers Kupp and Nacua in Week 8, Stafford had a standout game, passing for 279 yards and four touchdowns in a 30–20 win over the Minnesota Vikings.