Conflicting reports on Matthew Stafford’s health heading into Week 10

Matthew Stafford has been healthy throughout the season. It’s been a nice change from a 2018 campaign in which he played through a broken back and still never missed a start. So it’s a bit concerning to see the Lions ironman QB listed as questionable for the team’s Week 10 game in Chicago.

Now we have conflicting reports on the severity of Stafford’s back and hip injuries, and the extent of how questionable he is for Sunday.

First up is NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, who on Saturday afternoon tweeted out some doubt about Stafford’s availability for the game at Soldier Field.

Sources: There is concern about the status of #Lions QB Matthew Stafford, who is listed as questionable with hip and back injuries and could be a real game-time decision. One to watch.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 9, 2019

However, Kyle Meinke of MLive quickly offered a more local perspective from Allen Park that provides a more optimistic viewpoint,

This is the opposite of what I heard all week. Of course, it’s possible he suffered a setback. Has battled hip issues this year and back issues last year https://t.co/wFAZpwLQas

— kyle meinke (@kmeinke) November 9, 2019

Meinke also added that Stafford’s current maladies are not related to his prior injuries.

We will find out sometime before 1 p.m. ET on Sunday whether Stafford will play. The backup QB is Jeff Driskel.