NFL wife Kelly Stafford demands the NFL explain why the Los Angeles Rams don’t have a bye week this season.
“@NFL Just curious to hear the thought process behind making the Rams the only team in the NFL without a true bye week,” Matthew Stafford’s wife wrote on an Instagram story on Tuesday. “Because damn, after 18 years around this league, even I need a week off during the season … and I have never played a single snap.”
“I’m tired just watching from the stands. Can’t imagine how the guys feel. Anyway, feel free to leave that explanation right here …”
There was a box to reply.
The Rams play at Arizona on Sunday, Nov. 15, then have a bye in Week 11 before hosting the Green Bay Packers at SoFi Stadium on Wednesday, Nov. 25, in the NFL’s first-ever Thanksgiving Eve game. That gives them 10 days between games instead of 14, which is common with a bye.
The Packers have the same schedule; they also have a bye in Week 11 and 10 days between games before traveling to Los Angeles. The reason behind such a schedule is that the players’ union requires at least three days between games, which does not allow the teams to have a week off between Sunday and Wednesday and, in addition, it guarantees four consecutive days of rest during a bye week, which both the Rams and the Packers fulfill.
The Packers also have 11 days off after the Thanksgiving Eve game before playing in New Orleans on Dec. 6, while the Rams will have to host the Kansas City Chiefs eight days later, on Thursday, Dec. 3.
Also, Kelly Stafford posted a video on Tuesday, explaining that she had to stop exercising because she constantly saw updates about players recovering after their bye weeks, noting that this does not apply to the Rams.
However, this isn’t the first time she’s made such an appeal about the Rams’ schedule. In August, she wrote on Instagram that the Rams would start in Australia, play on Christmas and Thanksgiving Eve, and appear in seven prime-time games without an actual bye week.
Indeed, the Rams started the season in Australia and played against San Francisco. They won two consecutive games, reached .500 after four defeats in their first six games, and beat the Los Angeles Chargers at home on Sunday. The Rams face the Washington Commanders next.
The short break precedes a tough stretch, including games against the Packers, Kansas City, San Francisco, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Seattle Seahawks in Weeks 12 to 16.
Matthew Stafford is 38, is in his 18th NFL season, and was the league’s MVP last year. Detroit selected him with the first pick of the draft in 2009 and won a Super Bowl in his first season with the Rams after a trade in 2021. The couple has four daughters.
The NFL did not respond publicly to the post as of Wednesday morning.
