Quarterback Matthew Stafford is the Andre Drummond of the Lions

Common Criticisms

Neither Stafford nor Drummond have been able to overcome their team’s inefficiencies to advance beyond the first round of their respective sports’ playoffs.

Because of their team track record, both players are targeted by the fan base as the be-all, end-all of each franchise’s state of being.

Subjective Faults

If the Pistons are losing: “Well, Drummond isn’t trying,” or “Drummond can’t spread the floor.”

After a Lions loss: “Stafford can’t win the big ones,” or “Stafford plays down to his competition.”

The most common criticisms of both polarizing Detroit stars are all subjective.

Drummond can appear to take plays off or be shaken mentally by a mistake, but it does not mean he is the reason the team can’t make it the second round of the playoffs.

With the addition of Griffin and the new regime of Dwane Casey and Ed Stefanski putting the roster together, Drummond has as good a chance as ever to contend in the postseason.

In the NFL, the reliance on the quarterback position to drag a team deep into the playoffs has dissipated.

Stafford has dealt with several coaching and coordinator changes, the early retirement of an All-Time great weapon in Calvin Johnson, and the inability of his franchise to put together a consistent running game to support him.

Unlike in basketball, Stafford can’t play both sides of the ball.

If he could, it would be fair to equate the Lions’ failures to their quarterback.

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But the money!

Drummond is entering the final year of his contract with the Pistons unless he opts-in to a $28.8 million player option, which he’s hinted at electing not to.

His $27 million deal, thanks to a rising cap, is no longer a scary contract number when he is putting up the numbers he is. The flexibility of his deal at this point makes him an even more valuable asset than he will be on a new deal.

Stafford, once the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, is no longer that.

The likes of Jared Goff, Kirk Cousins, and Jimmy Garappolo are some of the quarterbacks now paid more than the Lions’ signal-caller’s $27 million average salary.

Stafford and Drummond make significant money because they are significant players, each setting records and putting together Hall of Fame careers.

Each one is flawed in his own way, but their flaws are not the cause of their franchises’ respective success or failure.

These are team sports, ya know.