The Detroit Lions have wrapped up the 2021 season. Over the next two weeks, MLive will hand out reviews for each of the team’s position groups.
QUARTERBACK
Starter: Jared Goff
Backups: Tim Boyle, David Blough
Key stats: Goff completed 332 of 494 passes for 3,245 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions; had a 91.5 passer rating, which set a franchise record for a quarterback’s first year with the team; had a 107.1 passer rating in five healthy games with Dan Campbell calling plays, which ranked third in the league over that stretch; completed 67.21% of his passes, which was just 0.01% off Matthew Stafford’s franchise record; fumbled nine times, which was 10th most in the league, but just two of them came in the second half of the season; won NFC offensive player of the week after leading a game-winning drive against the Vikings
Kyle’s grade: C+
Breakdown: Jared Goff was exactly what the Detroit Lions thought he’d be. It just took him a few months longer than expected to get there.
Goff struggled with his consistency in training camp. He committed too many turnovers. More than anything, he couldn’t push the ball downfield. And those issues haunted him once the season began, as he plummeted to the bottom of the league according to most metrics by which we judge quarterbacks. He had just eight touchdown passes through eight games, and six interceptions. He was in the bottom-third of the league in passer rating (85.3), bottom five in yards per attempt (6.5) and dead last in air yards per attempt. In other words, no one was throwing passes closer to the line of scrimmage than that guy -- and all his numbers were still in the pits.
The numbers are terrible. Of course, so was his supporting cast. Perhaps too much of Detroit’s offensive woes were put on Goff, because once Josh Reynolds was added as a deep threat and Dan Campbell took over the playcalling, everything started to fall into place.
In five healthy games with Campbell calling the shots, Goff was a completely different quarterback. He led a dramatic comeback win against Minnesota, capped off by a walk-off touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Two weeks later, he threw three touchdown passes in a stunning rout against the then-top seeded Arizona Cardinals. And in the finale, he threw two more touchdown passes as he led Detroit to another comeback win against the Green Bay Packers.
OK, sure, the Packers were resting many of their starters for that comeback drive. But even with most of their starters out there in the first half, Detroit still led Green Bay 17-13. And paired with the results against Minnesota and Arizona, the improvement from the offense in general and Goff in particular is compelling. Goff threw 11 touchdown passes in those five games overall, just two interceptions and had a passer rating of 107.1. That ranked among the three-best quarterbacks in the league during that stretch, and was up 25.6% from his eight games under now-deposed offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn.
Again, compelling stuff.
Now, the hard part: What exactly does it mean?
The most pressing matter facing the franchise is what to do with the quarterback position. Goff was acquired to help stabilize the offense until Detroit could draft a long-term solution, but was so good down the stretch that he might have played himself into the conversation for that role. That’s especially true when you consider what’s on offer in this draft. The Lions have the No. 2 pick, but there isn’t a Joe Burrow kind of guy waiting for them. There isn’t even a Trevor Lawrence. There won’t be a QB taken in the top five, and there might not even be one on the top 10. Perhaps the Lions could settle for a guy like Sam Howell, Malik Willis or Kenny Pickett with the Rams’ pick in the back half of the round, but then again, would any of those guys really be an upgrade over Jared Goff?
The Lions also have to consider what to do with the leadership of their offense, a decision that is impossible to separate from Goff. Campbell said he’ll take his time before naming a new coordinator, and that decision won’t happen until he decides whether he wants to continue calling plays. Campbell never wanted that role, but it clearly suits him. The running game also took huge strides in the second half of the season, where rushing yards were up 36.2%. And Detroit won three of its last four games with Goff under center.
If Campbell elects to continue calling plays, the Lions could opt for more continuity with their offense overall. That could mean Ben Johnson -- the de facto passing game coordinator down the stretch -- could become the full-time offensive coordinator. And that could mean more Jared Goff for next season.
But the question remains about what they should do for the long term. And as the rebuild advances toward the next stage, there is no question facing this organization -- not one -- bigger than that.
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