Jared Goff came over to the Detroit Lions back in 2021 with a lot of baggage. After a failed Super Bowl championship attempt with the Los Angeles Rams, Goff was sent over to Detroit via trade to help build back up a franchise that had seen much better days. He had also seen better days, staring down a "bust" tag if he didn't turn things around with the Lions.
Thanks in part to his hard work and the hiring of complimentary coaches in Dan Campbell and Ben Johnson, Goff has transformed from a borderline-unplayable quarterback to one of the best in the league when given the right tools to succeed. That last part, though, is what makes the Lions' Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers just a bit concerning as it relates to Goff's 2025 season.
Without a solid offensive line around him, or a playcaller who is comfortable getting silly with the weapons at the Lions' disposal, Goff is always going to look average or below average. That's likely why ESPN's Peter Schrager decided to go scorched Earth on Goff and the Lions after their 27-13 loss to the Packers.
"I think the brain drain is real. I think Ben Johnson's already 1-0 and he hasn't even coached an NFL game. I think you see that Ben Johnson brought a lot to that offense, and you get to this Chicago game tonight, and it's like, 'alright, you wanna see what the Bears do,' but he was important. Now look, Jared Goff won a lot of games with Sean McVay, and he won a lot of games with Ben Johnson. He don't got those guys anymore, and I think there's a bit of a, 'what could Jared Goff do without those two, even this deep into his career, with all his accolades?,' you have to see."
Goff will struggle the most until John Morton & Co. figure out better plan
Without Johnson, Goff is left to rely on John Morton to get creative with his playbook and players like Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Jameson Williams. The early returns on that playbook? Not great. Just take a look at this screen shot shared by Pride of Detroit's Jeremy Reisman, showing the strange routes the Lions were running against the Packers:
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ pic.twitter.com/QBtuqvD3Kh
— Jeremy Reisman (@DetroitOnLion) September 8, 2025
READ MORE: Line play will determine success or failure for Lions the rest of this season
There are more to be found on Twitter/X, if you're so inclined. All in all, it was clear that Goff was not being set up for success against Green Bay by this new coaching staff, and that's going to have to change. Goff, at this point in his career as Schrager points out, should be able to weather this storm. If he doesn't, then it feels likely that he needs a mind like that of McVay or Johnson to touch the stardom he has over the last two seasons with Detroit.
This stat shared by Draft Kings also does a tidy job of summing up Goff's career: he's 3-18-1 without being coached by one of McVay and Johnson.
Johnson will be going up against the Minnesota Vikings and their solid defense on Monday night, and sophomore signal caller Caleb Johnson will be getting his first taste of regular season playcalling from him. That game will speak volumes as to Johnson's impact on a quarterback's success, and on Goff's continued success with Detroit.