The Detroit Lions have used the offseason to make changes to the roster and coaching staff. In January, the Lions decided to hire Drew Petzing as their offensive coordinator. That move came after they fired John Morton after one year.
The offense wasn't clicking, which led to Dan Campbell taking over playcalling duties. The Lions are hoping that isn't the case again in 2026, and Petzing's offense has a chance to have quarterback Jared Goff playing at an extremely high level.
Lions offense can help Jared Goff regain form
In an article written by ESPN's Dan Graziano, he called out that last season, Goff posted his lowest total QBR rating (58.0) since his first season in Detroit. Yet, Graziano expressed that Detroit's easier schedule will be beneficial, and if Petzing can have Goff play at the level Lions fans have seen, Detroit will be back at its peak.
"The Lions' schedule also projects as the sixth easiest in the league, based on the 2025 record of their opponents. If Goff takes to Petzing's offense and coach Dan Campbell doesn't have to take over offensive playcalling again, the Lions could find themselves back at their 2024 heights."
And based on what Petzing showed in Arizona, there's reason to believe he will have the Lions offense humming. During his time with the Cardinals, he found success in several formations despite getting uneven play from Kyler Murray at times and having to produce with backups.
Al Karsten from PrideofLions posted a tweet ranking stats from 2023 to 2025, showing when the Cardinals ran 13-personnel. They found plenty of success, and that's a formation they ran the most under Petzing.
• 487 plays (1st)
• 5.6 yards per play (T-4th)
• 46.6% success rate (8th)
• 0.03 EPA per play (9th)
• 11.5% explosive play rate (6th)
• 23.0% of plays resulted in a first down (2nd)
• 53.6% red-zone success rate (9th)
Another area where quarterbacks were productive under Petzing is when they ran play action from under center. During the 2023 to 2025 seasons, they were effective, and Karsten posted that out in another tweet.
• 255 dropbacks (7th)
• 66.3% completion rate (12th)
• 51.1% success rate (9th)
• 0.04 EPA per dropback (t-17th)
• 18.0% explosive pass rate (20th)
• 7.46 YAC per completion (5th)
• 37.6% of attempts resulted in a first down (12th)
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These are two specific areas that will make life easier for Goff. Being able to dominate in 13 personnel (1 running back, 1 receiver, and three tight ends) gives an edge as teams will get heavier on those sets to stop the run, which opens the door for those play-action shots that Petzing has a knack for calling.
It also shows that they will be a run heavy, which always helps out a quarterback. When a team is dominant there, it opens things up for the receivers on the outside and for more deep shot opportunities. For a player like Goff, who is a pocket passer, this is a recipe for success.
During his time with the Lions, Goff has been a top-notch signal caller. Even last year, he still threw for 4,564 passing yards and 34 passing touchdowns, although he wasn't put in the best positions by his offensive coaches. That may not be the case in 2026, and that will allow Goff to regain form from 2024 when the Lions went 15-2, en route to the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
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