Colts: Pat McAfee’s tweet about Matthew Stafford sums up exactly what fans were thinking

All we heard last week after Matthew Stafford requested a trade out of Detroit was that the Indianapolis Colts were the perfect match. Not only that, but some of the league’s most esteemed insiders reported that they were leading the sweepstakes.

Then, however, the Rams stepped in and submitted an offer that the Lions simply couldn’t turn down, packaging former No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff alongside two first-round picks and a third-rounder in return for the in-demand quarterback, crushing Colts fans hopes and dreams in the process.

While this certainly isn’t the end of the world for Indy as they could still end up with another star gunslinger when all is said and done, the mutual interest between them and Stafford makes this a difficult pill to swallow. Perhaps nobody summed it up better than former punter Pat McAfee, who was pushing for the Colts to trade for Stafford from the jump.

Even Pat McAfee agrees that the Colts and Matthew Stafford were meant to be.

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

In retrospect, the Colts were never going to unload multiple first-round picks and an impact player for Stafford. Seeing as though Indy doesn’t currently have a starting-caliber QB on the roster, Detroit probably would’ve asked for a cornerstone piece at another position.

The front office has preached against formulating a blockbuster trade for the sake of doing so, and the conflicting reports about their supposed proposal to the Lions prove that. At the same time, however, it still stings knowing that Stafford wanted to play for the Colts and that emotional wound may not heal until we know who their starting quarterback for next season is.

A Stafford-Colts marriage just seemed written in the stars. For staters, Indy would’ve provided him with elements that the Lions’ unforgivably deprived him of over the last 12 seasons — like front office stability, a  formidable offensive line, and an elite defense to go along with dynamic offensive weapons.

On the other side of the spectrum, Stafford fit the exact profile of what the Colts were looking for in a quarterback this offseason: an established veteran on a reasonable contract so other additions could be made in free agency.

We’re not saying we would’ve given up as much as the Rams did for Stafford, but fans have every reason to feel unnerved for not knowing what the future holds at the quarterback position, especially since the seemingly perfect match is now off the board.

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