People Are Wrong About Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff
Sure, the Detroit Lions looked bad against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday evening, November 16, with their 16-9 loss in a slow-moving game. The offensive was totally out of sorts, and the Lions were 0-for-5 on fourth down in the defeat, so it’s easy to see those kind of plays and get down on the offensive leaders.
Some Detroit Lions followers are quick to point fingers at quarterback Jared Goff would be best to look at the real numbers and research. Following the loss to the Eagles, social media was lit up with comments from Lions loyalists who were putting the blame on anyone and everyone, but as the team’s quarterback, Goff got the brunt of it.
Of course, it’s not that simple. Remember that coach Dan Campbell took over play calling duties from offensive coordinator John Morton for this game, so having a totally new play caller could have easily made things difficult on Goff. But, aside from that, his numbers from this season are solid and speak for themselves, and that’s a point being made by Detroit Lions beat writer and analyst Mike Payton of A to Z Sports.
Don’t Make Detroit Lions Quarterback Jared Goff the Scapegoat
On Tuesday, November 18, Payton took to X to share his conclusions about Goff and the criticism that the quarterback has been getting. In the post, he makes it clear that he thinks the criticism is not founded.
“The mobile guys are getting sacked more than anyone,” Payton notes. “He also has a higher completion percentage under pressure than (Matthew) Stafford, (Patrick) Mahomes, and (Jordan) Love and the 8th highest passer rating. He’s not perfect, but he’s not the worst.”
For those who say Goff isn’t good in bad weather, Payton replies that the signal-caller has thrown for 15 touchdowns and four interceptions in cold weather as a Detroit Lions player. He’s also completed 64% of his passes in those games.
“His passing stats against winning teams are just as good, if not better than Mahomes,” he adds. “The guy you tell me is perfect in every way.”
He wraps up his post on X with a strong and poignant message: “You’re letting your emotions dictate your beliefs.” Payton adds, “Jared Goff had a bad game Sunday. No doubt about it. You’re crazy if you think this happens all the time and you’re crazier if you think they need to get rid of him now.”
Detroit Lions Followers Make Their Voices Heart
Followers were quick to make their thoughts known on Payton’s X post. “I file that loss under the Dan Campbell column. I get that his who ‘thing’ is being aggressive. But constantly passing up points or pinning your opponent back adds up. Doesn’t do the o line or Goff any favors,” one said. “If you compare Goff’s bad games to everyone’s else’s good games, then yeah he’s gonna be worse,” another said.
“Crazy how he can play MVP caliber football 90% of the time but people will still act like he’s the worst QB ever after one poor game,” another follower said on the team’s Instagram.
So, the moral of this story is that the NFL is complicated. You really can’t pin the Eagles loss on one person, and that person being Goff. Now, it’s time to move onto the New York Giants game, and let’s face it: The Giants are no Eagles. Even if we win this one, we’re going to have to be stronger, as an entire team, to really compete to the playoffs, and that’s not all on Goff.
BREAKING: New Neck Injury to Starter Opens Door for Jets Rookie to Emerge
The New York Jets received some good and bad news on the final injury report ahead of Week 6.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini revealed some surprising news: starting cornerback Brandon Stephens is dealing with a “new” neck injury and is now listed as questionable for the Denver Broncos game.
A new injury: CB Brandon Stephens is now being listed with a neck injury. He was limited today and is questionable for Sunday. The backup corners are Azareye’h Thomas, Quantez Stiggers and Jarvis Brownlee, Jr. #Jets
Stephens wasn’t listed on the injury report for the first two days of practice. That means that Stephens injured himself somewhere between the end of practice on Thursday and the beginning of practice on Friday.
Stephens was listed as a limited participant in the final practice ahead of the game.
One Man’s Misfortune Is Another Man’s Opportunity
It is never a good sign when a player pops up on the injury report unexpectedly.
However, this opens up the door for one of the young backups to potentially get their shot.
“The backup corners are Azareye’h Thomas, Qwan’tez Stiggers, and Jarvis Brownlee Jr,” Cimini posted on social media.
Michael Carter II was already ruled out for Week 6. The talented corner is still in the NFL’s concussion protocol and didn’t make the trip to London.
Last week, Carter missed the Week 5 Dallas Cowboys game. That meant the newly acquired Brownlee got to make his Jets season debut.
Thomas, the Jets’ third-round pick from April’s draft, has yet to start a game this season. If Stephens is unable to go, he could be an option for the green and white.
Jets Receive Some Good News via the Injury Report
Head coach Aaron Glenn confirmed that both pass rusher Jermaine Johnson and kick return specialist Kene Nwangwu are good to go for Sunday.
“Looking forward to seeing those guys out there playing,” Coach Glenn told the media on Friday, October 10.
Johnson has been battling an ankle/calf issue that forced him to miss the last three games. Nwangwu has missed the last four games with a hamstring issue.
Johnson brings an edge and, as a former Pro Bowler, can bring some production to the defensive line. The defensive end fill-ins for Johnson haven’t performed up to snuff over the last month.
The Musical Chairs at the Return Spot Can Come to a Painful End
Nwangwu is a former All-Pro return man. In his first game with the Jets last year, he cashed in a 99-yard kick return touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks. He strangely didn’t make his regular-season debut until December, despite being on the team’s practice squad since September of that year.
This year, he was supposed to be the straw that stirs the drink for the Jets. However, in the season opener versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, he seriously injured his hamstring.
That forced the Jets to play the popular game show “Who Wants to be a Jets Kick Returner?”
They cycled through a slew of players, but most of them produced putrid results. Xavier Gipson and Isaiah Williams both had costly fumbles in the return game that resulted in touchdowns for the opponents in tight one-score games.
Now the merry-go-round can finally stop, and for the Jets’ sake, hopefully stabilize to bring some consistency in the return game.
