Last week during the Los Angeles Rams Super Bowl championship parade, Matthew Stafford was caught up in a bit of social media fire for his reaction to the photographer falling off stage. Now, he has expressed remorse over his viral reaction to photographer Kelly Smiley’s fall during the Rams’ Super Bowl victory parade in Los Angeles last week.
During an appearance Tuesday on wife Kelly’s podcast, “The Morning After,” the couple discussed the incident, in which Smiley is seen falling from a platform while appearing to take a photo of the two. In videos that then surfaced online, Matthew Stafford is seen walking away moments later. Here is what was said on the podcast today:
“We can’t not talk about what happened,” Kelly began. “There was a photographer, who stepped off the back of the stage, had asked it we wanted a picture and I was like, ‘Yes,’ because looking back at my camera roll, I have literally zero of Matthew and I.
“When she offered, she stepped back and fell. And it was an awful, awful moment. Matthew looked at me and said, ‘Check her please,’ and turned around,” she continued.
“We followed up with her, the moment we got in the car, Matthew actually looked at me and said, ‘Hey, will you contact the Rams, ask how she’s doing?’ Did that, they’re like, ‘We think she’s going to be OK.’ We sent her flowers. Next day we wake up, not OK,” Kelly explained.
Stafford then replied, “Yeah, I mean, that obviously happened really quickly and suddenly and unexpectedly, and wish I had a better reaction in the moment.”
The Stafford's said that they are covering all of the photographer's hospital bills and paying for all her camera equipment that broke during the fall at the Rams parade.
Photo: Getty Images