Who is Matthew Stafford's family? Parents, siblings, girlfriend, kids…
After 12 years in the NFL, the Rams quarterback and his family can finally celebrate Matthew Stafford making it to the biggest game of them all.
Matthew Stafford is now well-known as the LA Rams quarterback who brought them to Super Bowl LVI. Behind the scenes, he is a southern boy with family roots in Dallas, Texas. After 12 years in the NFL, his family is excited to finally see Stafford play in the championship game.
Stafford's parents
Stafford's parents are John and Margaret Stafford and he has a younger sister named Page. Stafford was born in Tampa, Florida and the family moved to Dallas, Texas when he was in high school. His parents were always supportive of his journey as a football player and helped him get to where he is today. Margaret helped her son build his confidence as an athlete and often travels to his games. His father, John, was an athlete as well, but he was involved in swimming rather than football. He swam at Florida State University and went on to become the graduate assistant coach at the University of Georgia and then head coach at Bolles and later Florida State. He clearly passed on some of his athletic skills to Stafford, though he took a different route, and by the time he was in high school in 2006, he was considered to be one of the best quarterbacks in the U.S.
Stafford's wife
Stafford’s wife, Kelly Stafford, has been by his side throughout his career in the NFL and even before. The couple started dating in college, he the quarterback at the University of Georgia and she a Georgia cheerleader. Kelly is also the sister of Buffalo Bills wide receiver coach, Chandler Hall. Though the Stafford family mostly stays out of the spotlight, Kelly is known for hosting a podcast called The Morning After and did make it into the headlines for throwing a soft pretzel at a 49ers fan back in November. She’s been by Stafford’s side through his journey, but he’s also been by hers. In 2019, Kelly underwent an intense 12-hour surgery to remove a brain tumor. Kelly, young and healthy, had to learn to walk again and couldn’t see her daughters for two weeks. There was some concern she may permanently lose her hearing. Stafford took some time off from the Detroit Lions to help Kelly in her recovery.
"Matthew was incredible during the whole process. He was literally by my side at every step,” Kelly wrote in an ESPN essay. “I had exercises I needed to do — some of them were seemingly simple, like shaking my head left and right, and Matthew helped me through all of it.”
In the end, she made a difficult but full recovery and went back to the gym, using boxing as therapy. The couple have been through a lot together and a Super Bowl appearance for Stafford is made all the more emotional because of it.
Stafford's kids
Stafford and Kelly now have four daughters, twins Chandler and Sawyer, Hunter Hope, and Tyler Hall. Sawyer and Chandler will be five years old in March, Hunter is three, and Tyler will turn two in June. Stafford said he enjoys being a “girl dad” and has learned a lot of patience being a father of four. Though Stafford does not have social media, Kelly often shares photos of the family to her Instagram account.
If the Rams can get the win tonight over the Bengals in their home stadium, it will surely be an emotional day for the Stafford family.