Jared Goff Concerns Emerge After Lions’ Loss to Packers
The fears surrounding the Detroit Lions in the offseason came true in their season opener with the Green Bay Packers.
The bane of Jared Goff‘s career hasn’t been the blitz or pressure, but interior pressure specifically that forces him to speed up his processing or flush him outside the pocket. Goff has never been a mobile quarterback who can improvise and make a Mahomsian play.
There were concerns with the Lions having to replace guard Kevin Zeitler and center Frank Ragnow, both veteran Pro Bowl talents who could decipher defensive line stunts with poise.
That didn’t happen on Sunday in Green Bay, the site of a 27-13 loss.
Green Bay’s new look defense, with Micah Parsons playing in a limited role, forced pressure up the middle at will. Goff was rattled, taking nine hits and four sacks. The byproduct: dumping the ball off and deferring his progressions from new offensive coordinator John Morton. Goff’s average depth of target was just 4.2 yards, per Pro Football Focus (PFF).
Goff was still accurate, completing 31 of 39 pass attempts for 225 yards, but 10 of those completions went to Jahmyr Gibbs, who could only muster 31 yards receiving behind an offensive line that couldn’t create space for him to operate.
Detroit’s new guard tandem of second-round rookie Tate Ratledge and 2024 sixth-round pick Christian Mahogany allowed three sacks and seven pressures combined.
The obvious solution to teams creating interior pressure is to improve the offensive interior. That ship has sailed. The next step: moving the quarterback.
Goff’s mobility has never been his calling card, leaving the Lions with no options other than rolling with the growing pains of the new guard duo.
Hopefully, Mahogany and Ratelage can turn a corner, but if not, it’s going to be a tough go for Goff this season.
Jared Goff Addresses Red-Zone Struggles in Loss to Packers
While the box score suggested a closer game, the Lions did not score a touchdown until the final minute of the fourth quarter, a beautiful one-handed grab by rookie Isaac TeSlaa.
The Lions’ other three red-zone trips ended with two field goals and an interception.
“Not even close to good enough, right?” Goff said after the game. “There needs to be an urgency of improvement. There has to be. Today wasn’t even close to good enough offensively.
“I’m not worried about (the red zone). I am moreso just urgent about getting details fixed and making sure that everyone is on the same page and that our communication is better and getting lined up correctly and all that stuff. Ultimately, a lot of it falls on me. So, there are some things that I can do better.”
Jared Goff Addresses Lions OC John Morton’s Performance After Packers Loss
Communication was key to the Lions’ downfall on Sunday.
Veteran tackle Taylor Decker admitted that the Packers seemed to fluster the offensive line’s communication with twists, stunts and rotations from the defense.
Goff seconded that communication of everyone’s jobs and roles and praised Morton in his first game as the Lions’ offensive play-caller.
“Yeah, I thought he (Morton) did good,” Goff said. “I thought he did a good job and got us in and out of there well. I think that we can do a better job communicating from me to everybody and then getting lined up correctly, and then knowing our jobs and assignments; and then throughout the week just making sure that we are doing what we want to do, that our players know our intentions on each play and that we are then executing it on gameday.”
Eagles Make Shocking Deal For ‘Underrated, Underused’ AFC South RB
For much of the offseason we’ve wondered what Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman was going to do with a war chest of draft picks accumulated over the last few years.
The answer has been — pretty much anything he wants.
Roseman’s wheeling and dealing stayed at an electric pace following Philadelphia’s Week 1 win over the Dallas Cowboys, with the Eagles sending a 2025 fifth round pick and 2025 sixth round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for third year running back Tank Bigsby.
“Trade: Jaguars are sending RB Tank Bigsby to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for 2026 fifth- and sixth-round picks, per sources,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on September 8.
Bigsby creates a crowded running backs room in Philadelphia with reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Saquon Barkley, A.J. Dillon and Will Shipley already on the roster.
Bigsby was a grossly underrated and underused weapon last season in Jacksonville with 820 yards of total offense and 7 touchdowns in 16 games with just 1 start while playing behind Travis Etienne.
‘Underrated’ RB Shined During SEC Days
Bigsby, 5-foot-11 and 215 pounds, was the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2020 with 918 yards of total offense and 5 touchdowns for Auburn. He earned All-SEC honors each of the next 2 seasons as he racked up over 1,100 yards of offense each year and 10 touchdowns in both 2021 and 2022.
Bigsby finished his college career with an impressive 3,354 yards of total offense and 25 touchdowns in 3 seasons before leaving school early for the NFL. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds at the NFL scouting combine and the Jaguars selected him in the third round (No. 88 overall) in the 2023 NFL draft.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein actually predicted Bigsby might shine in a “Dynamic Duo” sort of backfield in the NFL in his pre-draft evaluation.
“Fumbling has been a concern in the past, and he might not be much help on third downs or special teams,” Zierlein wrote in 2023. “His size, creativity and quickness could create an opportunity for teams to pair Bigsby with another back to form an effective tandem in a zone-scheme rushing attack.”
Eagles Backfield Could Be Moveable Object
Shipley was effective in a backup role to Barkley against the Cowboys with 3 carries for 26 yards but was forced to leave the game with a rib injury — he might not be right physically to play in Week 2 against the Chiefs.
Dillon, a free agent signee, wasn’t effective awhen he had the ball with 3 carries for 10 yards — he just might not be the right fight.
Enter Bigsby, who could thrive in his first chance playing for a competent NFL franchise. The Jaguars were 13-21 over his first 2 seasons, including a 4-13 record in 2024.
“The eagles running back room has to be the best in the league right?” X user Malibu wrote on his official account following the trade.
“To those who don’t know… Tank Bigsby is legit,” X user Rob Hodge wrote. “Only 24 years old… Rushed for 766 yards and 7 TD’s last season. Perfect RB2…”
“Tank Bigsby is a legit good running back” SB Nation’s Will Rucker wrote on his official account. “Howie is always going to strike when he feels he can get value. This is your RB2a
