Tedy Bruschi thinks the Patriots should not trade for Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford

The New England Patriots are seemingly in need of a new quarterback, and one of the hottest names on the veteran market this year is the Detroit Lions’ Matthew Stafford. The 32-year-old will reportedly leave Detroit this season, and the Patriots have naturally been linked to him ever since the initial reports of his departure.

While Stafford is one of the most talented passers in football, one former Patriot does not see him as a fit with the team: long-time New England linebacker Tedy Bruschi visited WEEI’s Ordway, Merloni & Fauria show on Wednesday to explain why the team should not trade for the former first-round draft pick.

“I’m a fan of Matthew Stafford, the player. I’m just not a fan of his teams,” said Bruschi. “So, what does that say? It says watching him play is fun — sling it all over the place, the arm angles, taking chances. All of that stuff, that’s great. But it never equals into anything substantial, anything meaningful for the victory.”

Playing in a 165 regular season games and three additional playoff contests since entering the league as the first overall selection in the 2009 draft, Stafford has combined to complete 3,972 of 6,341 pass attempts for 46,017 yards as well as 286 touchdowns and 147 interceptions. Few quarterbacks in the NFL have produced at a similar volume as him over the last 12 seasons, and yet Bruschi is not convinced he would be a fit in New England.

“He is a star, but, yes, he is not a winner,” he said. “There’s a lot of guys out there with a lot of stats that have no playoff wins, and I think Stafford doesn’t have playoff wins for a reason. Now if he comes to New England, you’re gonna have to drop in pay, you’re gonna have to learn to play a different way. And if there’s anyone that knows what kind of player you are, he’s on the staff now, who’s just been hired, and that’s Matt Patricia.”

Matt Patricia spent almost three whole seasons as Stafford’s head coach in Detroit before getting fired last year, and certainly knows a thing or two about the quarterback. Whether or not that translates into New England making a move remains to be seen, but Bruschi does not think a marriage between the two would work.

“Winning football is something that I don’t really recognize when I watch him play,” he said. “I just recognize the highlight plays that he has and that’s really not gonna work with this type of team, in my opinion.”