There was still a question about it fairly well into the season, but now there’s no doubt Jared Goff will be the Detroit Lions quarterback in 2023.
Heading into this season, it seemed pretty certain Jared Goff would not be a Detroit Lion in 2023. Even fairly far into the season, it felt fair to predict he would not be back for a third season as the starting quarterback in Detroit.
But as the Lions went 8-2 over their final 10 games this season, Goff played as well as any quarterback in the NFL. From Week 10 on, as he authored the fifth-longest streak of pass attempts without an interception (324 and counting, heading into next season), here’s where he ranked in a variety of categories.
105.9 passer rating (fourth)
15 passing TDs (tied for sixth)
0 interceptions
7.7 yards per attempt (ninth)
8.64 adjusted yards per attempt (third)
1st in dropback EPA
3rd in passing DVOA (Football Outsiders)
Goff didn’t always put up big numbers over that winning stretch for the Lions. But he was efficient, effective and often clutch when he needed to be. Over those final nine games, he committed one turnover and that was a botched exchange center Frank Ragnow took responsibility for.
Jared Goff has seemingly cemented his place as the Lions quarterback in 2023
Via Pride of Detroit, head coach Dan Campbell has naturally been talking about Goff. First, after Sunday night’s game, he talked about the trust placed in Goff to deliver the game-clinching play against the Packers.
"Let’s let Goff finish this out for us,” coach Dan Campbell said after the game. “Let’s let him win this game. So, we put the big hat on him and had a feeling what they would be in and we just, we believed in Goff.”"
On Monday, Campbell reinforced Goff’s place on the Lions.
"He fits us,” Campbell said. “We’re about running the football, play action pass and when you do those things you need a quarterback that can get you in the right play and is very good at accuracy. Throwing the football, decision making, and he fits the bill on all of that. I mean, it was a hell of a year by him. He’s one of the biggest reasons we even got this turn around, just his decision-making, taking care of the football.”"
Goff was at his best with the Rams when the structure and talent around him was top-notch, and when it started to erode so did his level of play. The Lions took big steps toward improving that last offseason, and except for a couple games as hiccups it paid off in terms of how well he played this year.
If the Lions are going to become one of the top teams in the NFC and stay there for awhile, a better quarterback than Goff will eventually be required. But he delivered the strong finish to the season he needed, and if Campbell’s sentiment is to be believed Goff will unequivocally be the starting quarterback in 2023.