Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is facing backlash after a video showed him spitting inside the tunnel at Empower Field at Mile High following his team’s 30-26 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football. NFL on Prime’s James Palmer captured the clip.
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“Matthew Stafford spits in the Broncos stadium after 30-26 loss to Denver,” DNVR Broncos beat reporter Zac Stevens reposted on X.
The Week 3 loss dropped the Rams to 1-2. The Rams blew a 16-point lead in the second half, with Stafford throwing two interceptions to Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga, including a pick-six that helped Denver complete the comeback. Stafford still finished the night 30-of-55 for 390 yards and two touchdowns, but the final possession ended in a second interception to Hufanga on what amounted to a desperation heave, sealing the defeat.
Stafford addressed the loss itself in his postgame press conference, though he made no direct reference to the spitting incident.
“It’s a tough one. They forced the ball out, brought more than we had to block, tried to pull one up, and it’s kind of a glorified Hail Mary from whatever 30-, 35-yard line at that point. With some of the stuff that we’re doing, throwing the football-wise, obviously I got to be better, and I will be. [We] just got to clean some of that stuff up, and that’s stuff we will do.”
As Stafford walked off the field and into the tunnel afterward, cameras caught him spitting, with some fans speculating online that he aimed it at the Broncos’ “5280” sign, a nod to Denver’s mile-high elevation. Whatever the intent, the clip spread fast, and reactions poured in almost immediately.
One fan didn’t mince words describing the moment.
“Disrespectful, unprofessional, sad🤬”
Another commenter framed it as a simple case of poor sportsmanship.
“Sore loser!”
A fan’s reaction also brought attention to an earlier incident involving Stafford that had drawn criticism from fans. In 2022, photographer Kelly Smiley fell about six to eight feet from a stage while trying to photograph Stafford and his wife. Stafford appeared to look at her, say “Oh my,” and walk away. Smiley later suffered a fractured spine.
“He was always such a classless jerk”
One more commenter escalated the criticism into legal territory, arguing the act would have carried real consequences under different circumstances.
“Disgraceful, distasteful, and unprofessional. That is not how a professional quarterback who gets paid millions of dollars should behave. If that would have hit someone, it would have been assault.”
The Rams dropped to 1-2 with the loss, a rocky start for a team that entered the season with heavy Super Bowl expectations. Los Angeles now faces another tough test in Week 4, traveling to Philadelphia to face the Eagles, who have beaten Stafford and the Rams in four straight meetings, including the 2024 NFC Divisional Playoffs.