Since throwing five interceptions against the Houston Texans, Jared Goff has been riding a red-hot streak while leading the Detroit Lions.
Through the last seven games, Goff ranks first among quarterbacks in passing yards (2,138), first in passing touchdowns (20) and first in passer rating (121.9). He’s thrown only one interception in those games, with the Lions going 6-1 along the way.
In his first game after that five-interception game, Goff had a perfect passer rating while throwing for 412 yards and four touchdowns in a blowout win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Dan Campbell sang his quarterback’s praises after the win in San Francisco on Monday night, saying Goff is different and that he continues to grow and is just hitting his prime.
“To be able to get a win out here where we didn’t last year, and then the previous history you’re talking about with the Los Angeles Rams (in San Francisco), and then having family here, but this is different,” Campbell said. “This is a different Jared Goff now. He’s different. This guy has developed and matured, and he’s just stepping into his prime.
“He just continues to get better and better. He’s playing at an ultimate level right now. You find me a quarterback that’s playing better than him in this league right now. I’d love to see it.”
During that seven-game span, Pro Football Focus ranks Goff sixth among starting quarterbacks overall and in its passing metric.
When asked how Goff has grown, Campbell said he’s just a “student of the game,” repeating that three times before moving deeper into his reasoning.
“And then, he constantly — I think with anybody, he wants to learn the next thing, he absorbs everything, and I think he’s always looking for the next, ‘If I see something, what can I use and put it into my game?’” Campbell added. “I think he’s always thinking that way, like, ‘Can I be better with my eyes? Do I need to progress faster here? Can I see things a tick quicker?’
“So I just think it’s — man, it’s time on task, it’s his ability to process, and I think it’s just that he just wants to continue to learn and grow. I think that most successful people, no matter what you do, they’re always trying to learn and grow. And he’s obviously got the skillset to be able to do what he does and play at a high level. He’s an accurate passer, big arm, so he just keeps going, man. He just continues to get better.”
Goff echoed his head coach, both regarding the continued reps for his growth and for being in the prime of his career. The Lions quarterback has resurrected his career since landing here, and he’s continued to raise his level of play with each passing year in Detroit.
The 30-year-old has a career-best 36 passing touchdowns this season, with his best passer rating (113.6) and QBR (67.1) to this point. He’s also averaging the highest yards per attempt (8.7) and net yards gained per passing attempt (7.81) of his nine-year run.
Goff enters the season finale against the Minnesota Vikings ranked tied for second in completion percentage (71.7%) with Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield, trailing only Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Among MVP hopefuls, Goff is slotted fifth among by oddsmakers behind Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Bills quarterback Josh Allen
“I feel great. I feel like I’ve been considerably improving as time has gone on and feel like I’m playing pretty well right now,” Goff said Wednesday. “It’s a lot of credit to the guys around me. O-line is playing great. Running the ball great. We’ve got great receivers. Great coaches. It’s a lot of credit to everyone else, and I’m just doing my job.
“(It’s about) reps. Reps. Just work. Hard work. Putting your head down and trying to get better every day. Again, I think I’m steadily improving and I still think there is a ton of improvement to be had. It’s exciting. Yeah, I’m in Year 9 right now. I think I said it last year or the year before, but I’m kind of entering my prime. I’m probably right in my prime now and feeling pretty good. I hope my prime lasts quite some time.”