On one of the most significant days in a young athlete’s career, Kelly Stafford shared some advice with NFL prospects about bringing their girlfriends to the Draft.
“I’m going to be honest here — I don’t understand why guys do it,” Stafford, 35, said on the Thursday, April 24, episode of her podcast, The Morning After. “When you get drafted, you’re surrounded by family, and your girlfriend’s in all the Draft pictures — but then later, she’s gone — and all you’re left with are pictures with a random girl.”
She went on, “I know she’s not random at the time, but she might be later. It’s something to seriously consider. It’s like having your brother’s girlfriend in your wedding when they’re not engaged, and then later you have family photos with someone who’s no longer in the picture.”
Stafford shared a story about how she had her brother Chad Hall’s then-girlfriend, Rose, as a bridesmaid at her 2015 wedding to Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford. “[Chad] ended up marrying Rose, so it worked out,” she explained.
“But what if Chad didn’t marry Rose?” Kelly asked. “And now she’s in all my wedding photos?”
Matthew, 37, was selected as the first overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. Although he and Kelly were already dating after meeting at the University of Georgia, Kelly didn’t attend the event with him and his family.
“I didn’t fully grasp the whole Draft experience when he went through it,” Kelly admitted on her podcast. “But now that I’m older and have daughters, I understand. He was smart — Matthew’s smart. He didn’t know!”
The couple married six years later and now have four daughters: 8-year-old twins Sawyer and Chandler, 6-year-old Hunter, and 4-year-old Tyler.
Kelly and Matthew celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary in April, though Kelly recently revealed that their marriage hasn’t always been smooth sailing.
Before marriage, Kelly said, “You’re always putting yourself first.”
” Then all of a sudden, you’re putting someone else first,” she added. “Add kids into the mix, and it only gets tougher as more challenges come your way.”