Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford went on his wife Kelly’s podcast to talk about the family’s experiences since the team won the Super Bowl, including his reaction to a photographer falling off a stage last week that went viral.
NFL photographer Kelly Smiley fell backward off a stage while taking a photo of the Staffords at the Rams victory rally Feb. 16.
Smiley later said she fractured her spine and broke two of her cameras in the fall.
Kelly Stafford immediately rushed to the end of the stage to check on Smiley but it was Matthew Stafford’s reaction that went viral.
Video shows the Rams quarterback seeing Smiley fall, looking shocked, and then turning around and walking away.
The couple addressed the incident recently on “The morning after with Kelly Stafford” podcast.
“That obviously happened really quickly, and suddenly, and unexpectedly, and I wish I had a better reaction in the moment … I didn’t,” Matthew Stafford said.
“I apologize to her for that, but glad that, you know, all in all she’s doing alright,” he said.
Kelly Stafford agreed that her husband’s reaction was not good but said that life is about learning.
Matthew Stafford agreed. “One of those things that, try and train your reactions to be a little bit better next time,” he said.
The couple told the Los Angeles Times last week that they would join with the Rams to cover Smiley’s medical bills.
“We have been in communication with Kelly Smiley since yesterday’s incident, and we are sorry for what happened,” the Staffords and the Rams wrote in a statement to the Times. “As we told Kelly, we will be covering all her hospital bills and replacing her cameras. We wish her a speedy recovery.”
