He's been one of the best quarterbacks on one of the best teams, and that's no surprise to those in the organization.
Despite numerous injuries to key players and a challenging schedule, the Detroit Lions are 5-1, and quarterback Jared Goff is a huge reason for that.
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This season, among all NFL quarterbacks, Goff ranks:
- 1st in yards per attempt (9.25),
- 2nd in passer rating (111.5),
- 2nd in completion percentage (73.6%),
- 2nd in yards per game (268.3),
- 3rd in first down percentage (41.4%),
- 4th in yards per completion (12.6).
Since the start of Week 4, he’s completed over 85% of his passes while averaging 13 yards per attempt, easily the highest in the league in both categories. Plus, in that same span, he’s thrown for seven touchdowns and zero interceptions, and has only 10 total incompletions. He's also Pro Football Focus's fourth-ranked quarterback over the past five weeks.
He’s performed at a historic level and powered the Lions to the third-highest scoring team in the NFL, thrusting himself into the MVP conversation. While that may surprise some, Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is not one of them.
“None of us are surprised. I mean, he’s put stretches like this together in training camp,” Johnson said Thursday. “We probably didn’t start the season as hot as we wanted to but this is really what we expected going into the year.”
Johnson noted Goff has been very involved in planning each week and fine-tuning the offense, and he’s just continuing to take what he’s given.
“Jared’s been very good at staying consistent to a ‘if they get depth, let’s check it down,’” Johnson said, adding that the offense has plenty of explosive weapons.
“He has just stayed true to what the play calls for and we’ve been able to find open receivers and it’s been a good thing so far.”
Goff and the Lions have goals of hosting a trophy at the end of the season but Detroit's quarterback is already putting himself in a spot to possibly be earning some individual hardware.
He'll face another tough defense on Sunday when Tennessee comes to Ford Field. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. (ET).
