Matthew Stafford is playing without Calvin Johnson, but is putting up some of the best numbers of his career.

"I think he's a growing and developing quarterback, so yes, I do think he was better than he was the last year, two years ago, three years ago," Jim Bob Cooter said.

"Hopefully we're all getting better every year. I think he falls into that category too. But I think he's doing a really good job with what we're asking him to do and so are the receivers, tight ends and backs."

Through five games, Stafford is on pace for the best completion percentage (68.0), passer rating (99.6) and QBR (66.4) of his career.

"He's really just trying to throw it to the open guy. It's as simple as that. It sounds overly simple, but it's a really big deal," Cooter said. "You know, when you have Calvin Johnson out there, one of the all-time great receivers, going to the Hall of Fame as soon as you can get him in there, it makes a lot of sense to try and throw that guy the ball. Sometimes you might override your read to do that.

"Sometimes it's easier for a quarterback [when] you have your reads, you have your progressions, you have your thought processes and you just go around throwing it to who gets open. He's doing a good job of doing that."