Mitch Albom: With knockdowns in the past, Lions' Jared Goff is back on center stage

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Mitch Albom: With knockdowns in the past, Lions' Jared Goff is back on center stage

Mitch Albom, Detroit Free Press · Detroit Free Press

Fri, Jan 17, 2025 ·

12 min read

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This is a story about the biggest athlete in town, yet the most personal thing most people know about him is his name. "JA-RED GOFF ! JA-RED GOFF!" But JA-RED GOFF IS…what? The Detroit Lions ' star quarterback? A stunningly accurate NFL passer? Two words that are now shouted in stadiums more often than "Beer here!"?

Yes, all that. He's also a 30-year-old man who's really good at saying nothing too intimate or controversial, just sticking to the business of winning the next game, which for Goff and the Lions , is Saturday's playoff showdown with Washington at Ford Field. The price Goff often pays for his focus is being underappreciated or undercelebrated and, already in some corners, Commanders rookie Jayden Daniels is getting more hosannas than Goff. He doesn't care.

There's a reason for that.

Eartha Kitt, the famous singer/actress, once said it's good to get knocked down sometimes, just to see who will pick you up. Goff has been knocked down quite a bit during his impressive football life, both literally (he was sacked 84 times over three years in college) and figuratively. He was called a bust in his first year with LA and labeled a consolation prize when the Lions acquired him (and a slew of draft picks) for Matthew Stafford .

"It bugged the hell out of me," he admits. "It'll bug me when I'm done playing. But it's a chip on my shoulder. And that's something I can lean on in hard times."

Hard times seem in the rearview mirror right now. Goff is two playoff victories from a Super Bowl , with a dazzling 2024 stat line, a huge, long-term contract and a chance to win it all with a group of guys he loves because "we went through the mud together."

But in getting here, the lithe quarterback learned a precious lesson. He got to see who picked him up when he fell.

And how he bounced back so high is, well, kind of the story of his life.

All rise.

All-everything athlete

Goff grew up in in Novato, California, about 30 miles north of San Francisco . His father, Jerry, was an MLB player who retired and became a firefighter when Jared was young. As Goff admits, "It was very cool to brag about him in school."

Jared took rides on Jerry's fire truck. Jerry taught Jared to throw a baseball. Together they watched tapes of Jerry's major league at-bats.

But pretty soon it was Jerry watching Jared, who bloomed into an all-everything athlete. A typical summer schedule would see him at football by 6 a.m., baseball at noon and basketball in the evening. When asked what he might have done in life if not sports, he shakes his head.

"I get that question a lot," he said. "I don't know. Since I was 8 years old, I wanted to be a professional athlete."

Of course, it wasn't all testosterone. Goff has an older sister, Lauren, and since his father worked long shifts, Lauren and Jared's mother, Nancy, were frequently his companions

More: Mitch Albom: Detroit Lions' defense shows trademark grit en route to NFC's No. 1 seed

"It was two versus one when it came to what we would watch on TV," he laughs. "I got stuck watching a lot of women stuff."

When Goff finished high school, it came time to pick one sport. He could have gone with baseball, he says, "but once I got a full scholarship for football, it was a pretty easy decision." He chose Cal, one of only three schools that recruited him. The Golden Bears were coming off a lousy season, had just hired a new coach and were hoping Goff would help turn things around.

It's a pattern that has repeated in his life.

A lot.

New kid in town

Expectations, they say, are the root of all heartbreak. But they have shadowed Goff's career like a pickpocket.

At Cal, he was the top quarterback recruit for his newly hired coach, so expectations were enormous.

The same thing happened when he was the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NFL draft — after the Rams , moving to Los Angeles , traded a boatload of future picks to move up and snag a quarterback for their new fanbase.

Then Goff was traded to Detroit four years ago under yet another Lions regime change. And once again, he was the new QB with the new coach and a bunch of new promises.

"Did you think, when they picked you No. 1, that you'd be in LA your whole career?" I ask Goff, as we sit alongside the Lions practice field Wednesday, with the JUGS machine shooting footballs into the air.

"I think every guy who gets drafted thinks he's gonna (be) Ben Rothlisberger or Eli Manning ," he says, "where you're on one team forever. But you look around and even guys the stature of Peyton Manning or Tom Brady — they flip teams. Things change. You never know."

What we do know — now — is that the majority of fans and pundits got Goff all wrong in 2021. They viewed him as a sweetener in the Stafford deal, a throw-in, a bridge until Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes could draft the quarterback of the future.

But the future — 6 feet 4, dirty blonde hair and lanky frame — was staring everyone in the face.

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff gestures to the crowd as the Rams offense takes the field to run out the clock in their 54-51 win over the Kansas City Chiefs at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Nov. 19, 2018.

'Here's rock bottom'

After the Lions went 3-13 in Goff's first season, then started 1-6 in his second, observers were dismissive and angry. They called the whole Campbell-Holmes-Goff experiment another in a series of Detroit busts.

"Was there a moment," I ask, "during that stretch —"

"That was worse than anything else?" he interrupts.

"Uh, yeah," I say.

"Well, the first year was such a whirlwind. … We were 0-10," he says. "They all sucked. I think the second year when we were 1-6. That was lower. Because we were supposed to have had all these things worked out by now. ... That sixth loss was kind of like, 'All right, look around, here's rock bottom. I've seen it. Let's go up.'"

But while Goff's eyes were on the sky, others were on the door. Many wanted a change. They wanted him benched. They wanted the whole regime replaced.

"People were asking Brad if he could fire Dan," Goff says, almost incredulous. "That was a real question Brad got. 'Do you have the ability to fire Dan?' I mean, that's how silly that is … how quickly people want to make decisions for others."

Goff preaches patience with quarterbacks and cites Minnesota 's Sam Darnold as a recent case in point. But if it sounds like he's been storing the memories of all those doubters, he has.

Make no mistake. This is a smart guy — his favorite subject in school was math — and he absorbs things rapidly, be they an oncoming blitz or a reporter's questions. A quarterback's brain needs to operate like a computer; the faster the processor, the better the QB. This is what gives Goff the rare talent to hang in against a rush and stay focused on releasing the ball correctly. It's also what leads him, during interviews, to jump in before your sentence is finished, because, like reading a defense, he sees where you're going and he already knows how he wants to respond.

"That may help me on the field," he admits, grinning, "I'm not sure how much it helps me in life. Or with my wife."

Lions quarterback Jared Goff on the field during training camp on Tuesday, August 3, 2021, in Allen Park.

A monumental climb

But if Goff gathers things in quickly, he also retains them — like an elephant. I've long felt that Goff harbored private pain after that LA trade, not just for being dealt, but for how the Rams seemingly blamed him for their issues, even though he led them to a Super Bowl in his third season.

Early on here in Detroit he seemed guarded about those feelings. He short-answered questions about resentment and kept a stiff upper lip that King Charles would have been proud of.

But in speaking with him this week, he appeared more relaxed about it all, while staying firm in his self-belief.

"There were narratives created and decisions made based on something that happened to me, not something I created," Goff says of the trade and the months that followed. "And that's OK. That happens every day. I was aware of what was going on, but I had to fight my best to try and win games for this team. I really wasn't concerned with changing anyone's opinion."

More: Who is Jared Goff? What to know about the Detroit Lions quarterback

Instead, he let his play do it. Goff's climb since that 1-6 low point in 2022 has been nothing short of miraculous. Horatio Alger couldn't have written a steeper ascent. Goff has risen in completion percentage from 65.1% to 72.4%, in touchdowns from 29 to 37, in passer rating from 99.3 to 111.8, and in stature, well, immeasurably.

Goff led the NFC this season in passing yards, completion percentage and passer rating among regular starters. He was named starting quarterback in the Pro Bowl. He led the Lions to their best season ever (15-2) and the No. 1 seed in the conference.

Not surprisingly, many of those former critics are now whipping the horses on Goff's bandwagon. To which he quickly says: "Get outa here. I don't need it either way. Those are the same people that were saying the other things.

"And I don't forget."

When I ask if that means he's holding a grudge, he shakes his head.

"I don't hold a grudge. I just have a good memory."

Boy, is that a quote.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) celebrates as he and wide receiver D.J. Chark walk off the field after a 41-10 win Jan. 1, 2023 over the Bears at Ford Field.

'Just a learning opportunity'

Did you know that, while in college, Goff once invited the whole Cal marching band into his house for a post-game party? The game had been won and Goff and his roommates were celebrating. The band, having finished playing for tailgaters, was walking down the street, heading home, when Goff spotted them.

"I kind of reached out and said, 'Hey guys, thanks. Appreciate it.' And they were like, 'Can we come in and play?' And I'm like, 'Sure.' "

So in they marched, trumpets, trombones, drums, the works, and everybody had a blast, with Goff and his buddies raising the roof. It's an image that may run counter to your perception of Goff as a serious, focused professional, but it shouldn't. As he points out, "I like to have fun. If we win a game, I'm gonna enjoy it."

Still, can you blame Goff if his celebration cake these days has a sprinkling of retribution? Remember what Eartha Kitt said: It's good to fall down to see who picks you up?

For Goff, back in 2021, it wasn't the media, the pundits, or the fans. It was the Lions, and specifically Campbell. In a recent interview, Goff said of his coach, "He breathed life into me from the moment I got here."

I ask Goff what he meant.

More: The most popular chant in Detroit got its start in the last row at Ford Field

"I was at a low point in my career. I was trying to put the pieces back together and find where I fit. And he just kept, you know, standing behind me and pushing me and allowing me to try things and get better and learn.

"Failure wasn't a bad thing with him, it was just a learning opportunity. And it was great. He's been great, and he continues to do it."

Goff has said being traded to Detroit is the best thing that ever happened to him and that this group of teammates is uniquely inspired to win it all, especially those who remember the doubts of just a few years ago.

"A lot of these guys, we went through the mud together. The coaches, too. Being on the mountaintop with those guys, there could be nothing better."

Ford revealed the Detroit Lions Special Edition Powerboost Hybrid F-150 with special guest Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, during the kick off event for the 2025 Detroit Auto Show at Huntington Place in Detroit, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025.

Peaks and valley

If the Lions do get to the Super Bowl in New Orleans , Goff will have come full circle in his career, from peak to valley to peak again. Of course, he hopes the second time is different. I ask what he took away from the first experience (a 13-3 loss to the New England Patriots ) and he says, "I remember thinking we were very prepared. I was very aware of the moment. But I don't know if I learned anything profound, other than how sacred those chances are."

That's profound enough.

Guys like Goff, who prefer downplay to exaggerate, don't always realize how big a shadow they are casting, or how smart they can inadvertently sound. When I ask him about the many hits he's taken in order to stand and deliver his throws, he first replies that such hits don't compare to what his offensive teammates have to deal with.

He then notes that's he's mastered the art of going down gracefully and avoiding any real damage.

"Basically," he says, "I feel like I'm a good faller."

Then quickly adds: "And a good get-back-upper."

Which kind of finishes the story, doesn't it? The Lions were there. Campbell was there. But in the end, the person who picked Goff back up was himself.

That, for his future, bodes awfully well.

All rise.

Contact Mitch Albom: malbom@freepress.com . Check out the latest updates with his charities, books and events at MitchAlbom.com . Follow him @mitchalbom .

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: With knockdowns in past, Lions' Jared Goff is back on center stage

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