Why Matt Stafford's Injury Could Quickly Derail Lions Season

Just two short weeks ago, everything was sunshine and puppies for the Detroit Lions, as the Lions had just improved to 5-0 on the heels of a big win against the Chicago Bears in the first Monday night game in the Motor City in a decade.

Now, following Detroit's second consecutive defeat in Week 7, clouds of doubt and uncertainty are swirling around the team, and none of those are as dark or foreboding as the one swirling around the injured leg of Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford.

The third-year pro hobbled off the field late in Sunday's loss to the Atlanta Falcons with an apparent foot injury, and while Stafford has downplayed the injury's severity publicly, he is scheduled to undergo an MRI Monday that has Lions fans holding their collective breath.

There has never been a question regarding Stafford's ability, but durability issues have dogged him throughout a career in which Stafford is yet to play more than 10 games in a season, and should Stafford miss significant time as a result of this latest injury, it will be a crippling blow to Detroit's playoff aspirations.

The Lions presently rank 25th in the National Football League in rushing, and with starting running back Jahvid Best recovering from yet another concussion, the Lions lack the sort of strong ground game that could alleviate some of the pressure should Stafford be forced to miss a few games.

Backup quarterback Shaun Hill has shown to be a more than capable reserve in the past, but the fact remains that he's a backup for a reason, and should he spend prolonged time under center, it's not unreasonable to suspect that the Detroit offense would regress significantly.

Now two games back of the Green Bay Packers and likely angling for a wild-card spot, that's a regression that the Lions can ill afford, so they'd best cross their fingers and pray that the MRI comes back negative and Stafford will be in the starting lineup the next time Detroit takes the field.