5 potential destinations for Lions quarterback Jared Goff in 2023

It feels like a foregone conclusion Jared Goff will not be back in Detroit next season, but where could the Lions quarterback end up in 2023?

Through a season-and-a-half, Jared Goff has been exactly what was expected as the Detroit Lions quarterback. It had gotten to a point during his time with the Los Angeles Rams where the talent level there couldn’t elevate him anymore, so as the Lions started a rebuild he would only be further exposed.

There have been stretches of very good play from Goff as the Lions’ signal caller, late last season (107.1 passer rating over his final five starts) and through the first four games this season (11 touchdowns, three interceptions). But inevitable regression has come, and the Lions have scored 15 or less points in three of their last four games.

In search of cap space in a cap-surpressed 2021, the Lions restructured Goff’s contract after acquiring him in the Matthew Stafford trade. That move married them to him for this year, for better or worse.

But looking to the offseason, the Lions can cut Goff and clear $20.65 million in cap space with a $10 million dead money hit that should be palatable (via Over The Cap).

The question of course is who the Lions would replace Goff with in 2023? A rookie? A veteran free agent? A trade for someone? Some combination of a rookie and a veteran?

Spencer Raxter and Neil Ruhl of Woodward Sports addressed the idea of moving on from Goff next season, with Raxter expressing the sentiment of a lot of Lions’ fans–a rookie probably can’t be any worse than Goff, and a least said rookie might be mobile and able to extend plays.

Let’s go all the way to the Lions parting ways with Goff in the offseason, with a trade a remote and naturally unlikely possibility.

Where might Goff land in 2023?

5 potential destinations for Lions quarterback Jared Goff in 2023

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Let’s assume, however tentatively, this will be Tom Brady’s final season–if not in the NFL, then Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers would be somewhere in the market for a quarterback with Brady gone, but unlikely to be in prime position to draft one of the top prospects in the first round. They may simply seek a bridge to their next long-term quarterback, with pieces to put around said quarterback that would set him up for success and keep the team competitive.

Even if they are without Brady, the Buccaneers seem unlikely to tear it down and reset immediately, if they ever get to that point in the near future. Winning will remain a top priority in 2023, so leaning all the way in on a young quarterback (Kyle Trask?) without some sort of competition to start won’t happen.

How high Tampa Bay would aim if they have to replace Brady can’t really be known right now. But it’s fair to assume nothing would be out of the question, and all options would be pursued to whatever end.

Goff would be quite a downgrade from even the current version of Brady, intangibly if not physically too to some degree. Adding Goff and someone else to compete for the starting job would not be totally out of the question for Tampa Bay come March and/or April’s draft, again assuming Brady is gone.

4. Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders have crumbled under head coach Josh McDaniels this season, blowing three 17-point leads on their way to a 2-6 record right now. Derek Carr was supposed to reach a new level, reunited with college teammate Davante Adams as his No. 1 wide receiver, but instead he has mostly regressed thus far.

Carr is under contract through 2025. But the implications for the Raiders to move on in 2023 are actually better than the Lions would do to cut or trade Goff.

Via Over The Cap:

Pre-June 1 cut or trade: $29.25 million in cap savings, $5.625 million in dead money

Carr is what he is, and has always been, an overpaid signal caller who is not elite (que the Spider-man GIF with him and Goff, right?). If McDaniels is one-and-done as Raiders head coach, a roster reset may follow where it can get done. Quarterback is one of those spots where change could come, perhaps pairing a cheap veteran with an incoming rookie after parting with Carr.

Goff seems like an unlikely fit for the Raiders. But the previous regime went with someone who  had starting experience behind Carr for a bit (Marcus Mariota), so there’s a possibility on that angle too.

Finding landing spots for Goff next year requires some digging, and Las Vegas can’t be totally dismissed.

3. San Francisco 49ers

Jimmy Garoppolo was called upon when Trey Lance suffered a broken ankle and was lost for the season, but he surely won’t be back in San Francisco next year. Even if Lance is ready to go for Week 1 next season, the 49ers have to have some kind of backup plan for someone as inexperienced as he still will be.

Garoppolo fit as the fallback option to Lance this year, as trading him became impossible when he had shoulder surgery and he didn’t try to force his way out. But next year that isn’t happening again with “Jimmy G”.

Around Garoppolo’s injury absences over the years, Kyle Shanahan has coaxed competent quarterback play out of guys like Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard. Even as his reputation as an offensive guru fades a little at times, that stands as a positive mark.

The 49ers are plenty familiar with Goff, for better or worse, from his time with the Rams and playing against him twice a year in the NFC West. He won’t have to step in and be the starter, at least ideally as long as Lance is good to go, but San Francisco can do worse for a backup to the young quarterback they’ve invested big in.

2. Washington Commanders

Washington apparently left no stone unturned in their search for a quarterback last offseason, so it seems possible they called the Lions about trading for Goff. They of course landed on Carson Wentz, as the Indianapolis Colts couldn’t wait to get rid of him.

Wentz is currently on IR with a finger injury, and there’s no guarantee he gets his starting job back from Taylor Heinicke when he is ready to play. That says it all, and it casts realistic doubt on his future with the Commanders.

Via Over The Cap, the Commanders can cut Wentz in 2023, leave behind no dead money and clear almost $26.2 million in cap space. He is due a $6.176 million roster bonus on Mar. 19, and they’d probably like to avoid paying that if they’re going to move on. According to Spotrac, $4 million of Wentz’s $20 million base salary for 2023 becomes guaranteed on Mar. 17. So there’s that too.

Much like the Lions with Goff, the Commanders would have to have some idea of a plan to replace Wentz before they cut bait. Maybe it’s Heinicke, current rookie Sam Howell or someone else as an outright Wentz replacement. Maybe it means bringing in someone to compete with Heinicke, Howell, etc. for the starting job.

Going from Wentz to Goff is at best a lateral move, if not a downgrade based on raw skills. But we are talking the Commanders here, and an inevitable new owner can only fix so much by next March.

1. Indianapolis Colts

The Colts have become a picture of dysfunction in recent weeks. First it was benching quarterback Matt Ryan for Sam Ehlinger due to injury/ performance (or 2023 contract considerations). Then came firing offensive coordinator Marcus Brady, who by the way didn’t call plays. Then it was firing head coach Frank Reich this week, and replacing him on an interim basis with former Colts center Jeff Saturday. Saturday has no coaching experience beyond the high school level, and even that wasn’t much.

Andrew Luck’s sudden retirement in 2019 put the Colts on a quarterback carousel they have yet to get off. Week 1 next year will be a sixth straight year with a different starting quarterback for them, as whoever it is will follow Luck (2018), Jacoby Brissett (2019), Philip Rivers (2020), Carson Wentz (2021) and Ryan.

The hiring of Saturday has fueled the idea the Colts are just going to tank this season, get a top pick and then a new quarterback of the future once and for all. That may indeed be the plan.

So how could Goff fit in Indianapolis, you say? If not as the next in their carousel of starting quarterbacks, which feels unlikely, he would be an experienced backup to a pptential incoming rookie. And he shouldn’t expensive, as he enters the phase of his career where no team will guarantee him a starting job.