Matthew Stafford reveals how Taylor Swift ‘Patient Zero’ cameo made him hero to daughters

Matthew Stafford is a Super Bowl champion and the reigning NFL MVP, but none of those accolades carry as much currency inside his own household than his recent appearance in Taylor Swift’s newest music video.

The Rams quarterback spoke Wednesday for the first time about his surprise cameo alongside wife Kelly Stafford in Swift’s new “Patient Zero” music video, revealing that the real reason he agreed to step in front of the camera had little to do with wanting to be an actor. 

It was about his four daughters.

“They were right there with me,” Stafford said. “That’s one of the main reasons that I ended up going to do that. She wanted to offer an experience for our family and our kids to see that. I’m obviously really grateful and excited to be in it.”

The Staffords filmed their appearance sometime during the offseason, although the 38-year-old quarterback admitted he couldn’t remember exactly when.

“It was sometime this offseason,” said Stafford about when he shot the cameo.” I can’t remember the month, to be honest with you.”

Stafford might not remember, but it’s an experience his daughters will certainly remember for the rest of their lives.

Stafford said they were on set for the production and watched Swift work behind the scenes, an experience that offered them a glimpse beyond the finished product their father eventually appeared in.

“Just to watch her do her thing is pretty impressive,” Stafford said. “From borderline directing, producing, writing, all of it, editing live as we were doing it. It was really cool to be a part of it.”

The cameo became public when Swift debuted “Patient Zero” over the weekend, with Stafford and Kelly appearing together at a formal event in the video. It was uncharted territory for the star quarterback, so he was happy to poke fun of himself on Wednesday.

“I’ve never been a part of it before,” he said. “I probably won’t ever be again based on my acting chops.”

Stafford said his daughters already have “Patient Zero” in heavy rotation on their music playlists, turning an ordinary drive to soccer practice this week into the kind of moment that explained why he said yes in the first place.

“My girls, as they do with all her songs, love that song,” Stafford said. “I was actually driving them to soccer yesterday and they were asking me to play it in the car, so we had it on repeat.”

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