The Detroit Lions have confirmed that they will be offering Matthew Stafford a contract extension.

The quarterback has two seasons left on his current deal with the NFC North side, having signed a six-year contract when he was drafted in 2009.

General manager Martin Mayhew told the team's website: "My thought on that is that we're going to try to extend him. There hasn't been a whole lot of dialogue about it at this point, but I think that's coming.

"It's never easy. You're talking about a quarterback that's your starter, that's a quality player, that's a talented guy and I think one of the better young quarterbacks in the NFL.

"So it'll be a challenge. But most of them, for good players, they're a challenge. The easy [contracts], usually [players] aren't that good."

The Lions have made the playoffs once since Stafford joined the side, but finished the 2012 season bottom of their division with four wins and 12 losses.