and they were discussing Jarod Goff. They were debating whether you could characterize Goff as "solid" as a QB, and it kind of made me shake my head. Look, I think that if you judge Jarod by highlights, he is not going to get people excited like say, maybe, Carson Wentz or Dak Prescott. Same if you go by fantasy stats, because he rarely blows up the stat sheet in part because McVay runs the ball near the goal line when other QBs get lots of red zone TD passes. Goff isn't overly athletic or a runner, which is so much in vogue these days.
But what makes Goff special in my opinion is what de does do well. The Rams run more play action than any other team, which means Goff has to turn his back on the defense on pretty much every play. People take that for granted, but many, many QBs simply cannot turn their backs on the defense and then turn around, decipher the defense, and make quick decisions and accurate throws. Goff makes this seem so easy and routine, but most QBs really can't do this at the level we are accustomed to. The Rams also ask Goff to throw into the middle of the defense more than any team I watch, and into tight windows. The Rams' offense relies on this feature. If you throw into the middle of the defense, you are going to also have tips, picks, and close calls. It's part of the deal. I saw Mahomes throw into the middle of the field against the Raiders two weeks ago and threw a horrible pick that cost the Chiefs their comeback. Brady had worse stats than Goff two weeks ago in his LOSS to the Bears. It's ok to be critical of Goff, but its unfair to not recognize his unappreciated skills and importance to this offense, or assume anyone could come in and run this offense better.
McVay has never won an NFL game as a coach without Goff at QB.
