Mark Sanchez upset Lions fans with comments about Matthew Stafford, Detroit
Mark Sanchez and Kevin Kugler were the announcing team for Sunday’s Detroit Lions-Los Angeles Rams, and not everything went smoothly.
During the third quarter of the game, Sanchez tried to clarify a point he made earlier in the telecast about Detroit and Matthew Stafford.
Stafford is in his first season with the Rams after spending the first 12 years of his career playing for the Lions. Sanchez said on the telecast that Stafford had finally found a home in Los Angeles. He called Detroit a small market and described Stafford as “underappreciated” while in Detroit.
Lions fans and media that covers the team did not appreciate the comments.
What is Mark Sanchez even talking about? The fans here didn’t appreciate Stafford in this “small market” of Detroit?
— Mike Sullivan (@MikeSullivan) October 24, 2021
Mark Sanchez saying Stafford “finally found a home in Los Angelas.” So nauseating. Enough already! #Lions
— Matt Dery (@DerySpeaks) October 24, 2021
Mark Sanchez is insufferable. Stafford is now appreciated in LA. Like he wasn’t in Detroit. 🤡 #onepride
— Mike Moss (@MossQ) October 24, 2021
Late in the third quarter, Sanchez issued a clarification. He said that he meant Stafford was underappreciated by the national media, not the fans.
Mark Sanchez says the national media overlooked Matthew Stafford because he was In Detroit #onepride pic.twitter.com/Qgp526nChu
— Anthony (@anthonyjc92) October 24, 2021
“I didn’t mean about the fans not appreciating him … because I think the fans and the organization in Detroit knew who they had. It’s more from a national media standpoint … we just kind of overlooked them because of their losing seasons and small market,” Sanchez said in his clarification.
What’s amazing is that even in his attempt to make nice with Detroit fans, he insulted them by calling them “small market.”
Detroit is not at all a small market. It’s a mid-market city with teams in all four major pro sports (Lions, Tigers, Pistons and Red Wings). All football fans knew who Stafford was. Most people recognized that it was time for Stafford to move on. There were no hard feelings.
Maybe the problem is Sanchez played at USC in Los Angeles and then for the Jets in New York. Maybe for him, anything less than LA or New York is small market.
If Sanchez had said that Stafford never fully realized his potential at a team or individual level while with Detroit, but he is in the process of doing so in LA, few would have complained. Because that’s effectively what’s happening.
Photo: FOX Sports