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Jared Goff shows off graceful in-pocket mobility on big first down completion

Don't let anyone tell you Jared Goff's not mobile.
Brad Berreman
Brad Berreman

SideLion Report

Nic Antaya/GettyImages

By this point, we know full well what Jared Goff is as a quarterback. Good, bad, ugly, in-between etc. If you created a mobility scale of your grandmother to Lamar Jackson, he's on the geriatric end for sure. If he has to take off and run, a couple moments so far this season notwithstanding, it's not pretty.

Defensive play callers know what pressure does to Goff, even it blitzing won't get through one of the best offensive lines in the NFL very often. So sending extra rushers is a risk worth taking more often than not, just to throw Goff off-rhythm when they do get home.

The Seattle Seahawks sacked Goff to end the Lions' first offensive series on Monday night. They started their second series in more typical fashion, with two David Montgomery runs that totaled 15 yards. On 2nd-and-6, Goff hit wide receiver Jameson Williams for a 10-yard gain and a first down. That got the ball rolling, as the Lions went 93 yards on 12 plays with a Montgomery touchdown to end the series.

Back to Goff's first pass attempt of the series. Under duress, he did a full 360, squared his shoulders and fired that dart to Williams.

Often, Goff (or most any other quarterback, for that matter) would have fallen down in that situation and just lived to play the next down. But Goff, 1. Stayed on his feet. 2. Composed himself enough to get back square to his target and 3. Fired a pass into a tight window.

Goff is what we call a good "anticipatory thrower" when he's on his game. He knows where his options are, and is decisive to get the ball to them. Credit should also go to Williams on this one, if only because he didn't assume Goff would go down and he made a clutch grab.

Here's a small sampling of the Twitter reaction to Goff's 360.

People (everyone) will tell you Goff is not very mobile. But for one shining moment on Monday night, he was an athletic magician in the pocket when under duress.

Brad Berreman

Brad Berreman

Brad Berreman has been with FanSided since July of 2016, covering a wide range of sports. In his current role, he primarily writes for multiple sites in the NFL Division (SideLion Report, The Viking Age, Bear Goggles On and Just Blog Baby). His prior writing experience, going back over 20 years when he started part-time, includes Rant Sports, Rotowire, KFFL and many other sites, with an occasional tilt toward fantasy football.