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Brad Holmes: I know Jared Goff has a chip on his shoulder this year
Posted by Myles Simmons on June 17, 2021, 9:11 AM EDT
Detroit Lions Mandatory Minicamp
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Several factors led to the Lions and Rams swapping quarterbacks early on in the offseason, including Jared Goff falling out of favor in Los Angeles.
But by all accounts, Detroit has been happy to have the 2016 No. 1 overall pick.
Lions General Manager Brad Holmes was the Rams’ director of college scouting when L.A. picked Goff five years ago. So Holmes saw the quarterback respond positively after going 0-7 as a starter his rookie year. The G.M. is getting a similar vibe from Goff heading into the 2021 season.
“He had a chip on his shoulder going into ’17 and then you see the last four years of how many games that he has won,” Holmes said. “Well, I think going into this year — not I think, I know going into this year, that chip is back from how things ended last year and I think Dan [Campbell] has done an incredible job managing basically the expectations of him, the ownership that he’s getting. … Having intimate knowledge of what he did go through in L.A., and the conversation we had, I think we’re getting him at a good spot.”
Since 2017, Goff has compiled a 42-20 record as a starter, leading the Rams to three postseason appearances and three playoff wins — though he technically didn’t start Los Angeles’ victory over Seattle in January.
But Goff’s biggest problem over the last two years has been turnovers. He’s thrown 29 interceptions and lost nine fumbles in 31 games since the start of the 2019 season. For Detroit to exceed expectations in 2021, Goff must reduce those giveaways.
