Who Should I Start? Matthew Stafford or Geno Smith

Tuesday, December 30, 1:02 AM

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford may have sold his shot at winning MVP in Monday night's loss to the Atlanta Falcons, completing 22 of 38 passes for 269 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. The 37-year-old signal-caller entered the game with only five interceptions on 519 pass attempts this season, but he threw three costly ones Monday night, with one of them being returned for a pick-six. It was easily the veteran's lowest passer rating of the season at 64.5, with the next closest game being 85.9 in his two-interception game in Week 13's loss to the Carolina Panthers. Stafford still managed to throw two touchdown passes, extending his streak to 10 consecutive games, twice as long as the next closest quarterback. Los Angeles will close out their regular season at home against the Arizona Cardinals before having to play on the road in the playoffs.

Wednesday, December 31, 3:41 PM

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll said that quarterback Geno Smith (ankle) will not play on Sunday against the division-rival Kansas City Chiefs in the Week 18 regular-season finale, according to Ryan McFadden of ESPN. "I hate closing the door on any opportunity, but it's going to be really hard for him," Carroll said. Smith suffered a serious ankle injury in the Week 17 loss to the New York Giants and won't suit up for a meaningless contest to close out the regular season. With the 35-year-old veteran wrapping up a brutal first year in the desert, backup Kenny Pickett is expected to start this weekend. Aidan O'Connell could also end up splitting time with Pickett against KC. Smith was one of the worst starting QBs in football in 2025, completing 67.4% of his 448 pass attempts for 3,205 yards, 19 touchdowns, and a league-leading 17 interceptions in 15 starts.