Stop the Madness, Goff Is Our Guy
If you prefer the spoken word, I yell all about this on Ep. 99 of The Fizz.
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This is one of the most anticipated off-seasons Detroit Lions fans have gotten to experience in the last 30 years. And the only reason I’m saying 30 years is because I’m 32. I’m not diving into off-season excitement levels of the Detroit Lions fan base pre-1991, so please forgive me if the off-season of 1989 or something was a real jimmy rustler.
But I digress. The Lions closed the year going 8-2, knocking off the Pack in their own barn, culminating in the best Lions’ season we’ve seen since Caldwell was rocking the main headset.
While the defense undoubtedly made improvements mid-way through the season, it is without question that the Lions offense was the catalyst for Detroit’s improbably late-season playoff push.
Jamaal Williams rushed for over 1,000 yards and lead the NFL in rushing touchdowns (17).
Amon-Ra was top-10 in receptions and 11th in yards.
The offensive line was a top-5 NFL unit. Chark came on strong at the end and guys like Kalif Raymond and Craig Reynolds had breakout seasons.
And at the center of it all? Quarterback and team captain, Jared Goff.
Remember him? The guy nobody wanted in the Stafford deal? The guy we had to take on in order for the deal to get done? The guy who was born-and-raised in Cali, who took LA to the Super Bowl in 2019, then was cast off to Detroit like unusable scrap metal in a junk yard?
Well that guy did the following in 2022:
- Lead the Lions offense to a top-five finish
- Lead the Lions to their first winning record in five seasons
- He was the best QB in the league on play action
- Only three quarterbacks — Mahomes, Tua Tagovailoa and Jimmy Garoppolo — were more efficient than Goff against the blitz in 2022 (The Athletic)
- He did not throw an interception in his final nine games of the season. He did not throw an interception in his final 324 pass attempts of the season — tied for the fifth-longest streak in NFL history. His interception rate of 1.2 percent for the season was the second-best in the NFL, trailing only Daniel Jones. (The Athletic)
- 6th in pass yards (4,438) (3rd in NFC)
- 6th in TDs (29) (3rd in NFC)
- Only threw 7 picks and had a rating of 99.3
- Made the Pro Bowl
Is he electric? No. Is he flashy? No. Does he look like the statue of David when it’s time for him to scramble? Yes. Could a tree beat him in a race? Yes. Do those last two things matter? No.
All Goff has done since being here is maximize the opportunities around him, not complain even in the slightest bit, and given back to the community of Detroit.
Like stated above, the Lions have a top five offense. They need to address the likes of Jamaal Williams at RB and DJ Chark at WR. They could always add depth on the line but outside of that the only thing the Lions should be touching at Quarterback is securing a veteran backup for JG16.
Stop your crazy Lion dreams of Lamar Jackson coming here. It’s not happening and it makes zero sense. Look, I get Lamar is made of pure unbridled electromagnetism and Goff seasons his meat with salt but there’s no need to pay the INSANE price for the shiny new toy when our solution, in the form of a top-3 NFC QB, is right in front of us.
People also love to casually ignore that Lamar, the running QB, has missed 10 games over the past two season with, you guessed it, leg injuries!
Tell me how investing TWO first round picks and a couple of Brinks trucks filled with cash is worth it when we already have our Cali Prince leading us to a North Championship next year?
And as far as the draft goes? Forget about it. Invest those early picks in defense, or trade with the slappies who really need a QB.
Goff is 28, there’s a shit ton of good football left in him. I know it, Holmes knows it, it’s time the rest of this State knew it.
#GoffsOurGuy 🍾
