| The Detroit News
Former Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh is preparing to play in his second Super Bowl and looking to win his first as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But even with that goal dominating his focus, he couldn’t miss this weekend’s trade agreement that saw the Rams and Lions swap two quarterbacks he knows well, Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff.
Suh and Stafford played together for five seasons before the dominant defender cashed in as a free agent and signed with the Miami Dolphins in 2015. Then after Miami, Suh landed with the Los Angeles Rams in 2018, where he and Goff were teammates on a team that went 13-3 and advanced to the Super Bowl before falling short to the New England Patriots.
Speaking during virtual availability on Monday, Suh called the trade interesting and said he’s happy for Stafford.
“Matt had an opportunity to, I’m assuming, some decision-making power in going to that particular team,” Suh said. “If that’s the case, I’m happy for him moving forward, in that aspect.”
As for Goff — who Suh called the best quarterback he’d ever played with in a 2018 social media post — the lineman reached out to his former teammate to praise the city of Detroit, as well as offer help getting settled in the area.
“I actually spoke to Jared Goff the other day when it actually happened, just to let him know he’s going to a great city in Detroit, that I’m excited for him and to let me know if he needs anything,” Suh said. “I know a lot of people up there, a lot of great people in the community that will be happy to help him get his feet settled. So I’m excited to see how that help happens for both teams and go from there.”
To bring things even closer to full circle, Suh also played for new Lions coach Dan Campbell. Suh was still in Miami in 2015 when the franchise fired Joe Philbin and named Campbell the interim coach.
Not surprisingly, Suh is thrilled with the pairing of his former coach and former team.
“Yeah, Dan is a great guy,’ Suh said. “I had an amazing time with him being our interim head coach at the Dolphins. He’s, without question, a players’ coach and I’ve been able to stay in touch with him when he was at New Orleans. Obviously playing them twice these past two years, you can see that fire in him, as you saw in his press conference. So I’m excited for Detroit to have a guy like that. And I think he’s going to have an opportunity to bring some success.”
Suh, who has recently been something of a hired gun by playing on one-year deals each of the past three seasons, is scheduled to be a free agent once again this March. The five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro has continued to be a force at the age of 34, recording six sacks for the Buccaneers this season.
Expecting twins with his wife, Katya, he said they’ll sit down and discuss his future this offseason, but Suh is hopeful to continue his playing career in 2021.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers