Maybe it was too soon, too fresh in his mind as he stood at the lectern in a Carhartt jacket and hoodie, bruised and battered with a damaged hand and a recent visit to the concussion-protocol tent.
But mostly, Matthew Stafford was beaten. He had just absorbed another loss at Ford Field, where he suffered so many losses over 12 seasons. And when he was asked Sunday night, after his long-awaited return, if he was happy for the city of Detroit after the Detroit Lions had beaten his Los Angeles Rams, 24-23, in the first playoff game at Ford Field, Stafford chose to drop a passive-aggressive bomb.