Jared Goff

Jared Thomas Goff (born October 14, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California, where he was a first-team All-Pac-12, and was selected first overall by the Los Angeles Rams in the 2016 NFL Draft.

After an unsuccessful rookie season, Goff rebounded in his sophomore year when he helped lead the Rams to their first winning season in 14 years and their first playoff appearance in 13 years. Goff oversaw further improved fortunes for the Rams in 2018, which saw the team reach Super Bowl LIII, the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance since 2001. He also received Pro Bowl honors in both seasons. Amid a production dip during his next two years, Goff was traded to the Lions ahead of the 2021 season.

Goff was born in San Rafael, California and raised in Novato, California, the son of Jerry Goff, a former Major League Baseball player. He also has an older sister named Lauren. Goff grew up as a San Francisco 49ers fan and wears the number 16 as a tribute to Joe Montana, who played for the 49ers before Goff was born.

Goff attended Marin Catholic High School in Kentfield, California, and graduated in 2013. He played for the football team, throwing for 7,687 yards and 93 touchdowns with 18 interceptions in three varsity seasons at Marin Catholic, completing 477-of-767 passes (62.2%), equal to a passer rating of 125.5, for teams that combined to post a 39–4 overall record and 21–0 Marin County Athletic League mark on their way to an appearance in the state title game, one North Coast Section crown, three NCS playoff appearances, and three MCAL championships.

Goff was recruited by a number of college programs and received scholarship offers from Boise State, Fresno State, and Washington State before choosing to attend the University of California, Berkeley. Goff was a mid-year enrollee at Cal in January 2013 and joined the Golden Bears for 2013 spring practices. In August, he was named starting quarterback for the 2013 season over redshirt freshman quarterback Zach Kline, becoming the first true freshman quarterback in Cal history to start a season opener.

Goff set 26 Cal records. This included passing yards (12,220), passing yards per game (329.7 ypg), touchdown passes (96), completions (977), passing attempts (1,569), total offense (12,086), and total plays (1,739). He is second only to Aaron Rodgers on Cal's all-time list for passing efficiency (143.95).

2013 season

Under new head coach Sonny Dykes, Goff started all twelve games in the 2013 season, and although the team finished 1–11, he set Cal single-season records for passing yards (3,508), yardage gained (3,508), total offense (3,446), passes completed (320), and passes attempted (530). Goff finished his true freshman season with a 60.3 completion percentage with 18 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions.

2014 season

In 2014, Goff was again the starting quarterback for the Golden Bears. In a September 27 matchup against the Colorado Buffaloes, Goff threw a career-high seven touchdown passes, completing 24-of-42 passes for 458 yards. On October 4, Goff threw for a new career-high and school-record 527 yards and five touchdowns in a 60–59 victory over Washington State. Goff helped lead the Golden Bears to a 5–7 season, a four-win improvement over the 2013 season. He finished the 2014 season with 3,973 yards, 35 touchdowns, and a 62% completion rate, once again setting new school records.

2015 season

In 2015, as a junior, Goff led the Bears to a 7–5 regular-season finish, clinching Cal's first winning season since 2011. Going into the season, Goff was projected as the top quarterback for the 2016 NFL Draft by Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay. On November 14, 2015, Goff threw for 453 yards and six touchdowns in a 54–24 victory over Oregon State, earning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors for the first time. Two weeks later, Goff set a new Cal single-game record with 542 passing yards in a 48–46 come-from-behind victory over Arizona State, earning Player of the Week honors for a second time. In the 2015 Armed Forces Bowl, Goff threw for six touchdown passes and 467 yards, leading the Bears to a 55–36 victory over Air Force.

In 2015, Goff set a new Pac-12 single-season passing-yardage record (4,714), and also set a new conference record for touchdown passes in a season (43). He earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors. He was the first Cal quarterback to earn first-team All-Pac-12 honors since Rodgers in 2004 while leading an 8–5 Cal team to a winning record and bowl game for the first time since 2011 as well as a post-season win for the first time since 2008.

During Goff's time as quarterback, the Golden Bears never beat an in-state rival, going 0–9 against Stanford, UCLA, and USC, and they also went 0–3 against division rival Oregon. Goff's father has been quoted as saying the lack of a marquee win bothered his son. Goff majored in sociology during his time at Cal.

After his junior season, Goff announced his decision to forgo his senior season and enter the 2016 NFL Draft.

Statistics

Los Angeles Rams

2016 season: Rookie year

In mid-February 2016, most analysts had Goff projected to be selected in the early first round of the draft, with the second overall pick of the Cleveland Browns being his most frequently predicted landing spot, or the San Francisco 49ers with the seventh overall pick. Despite not excelling at the physical tests at the NFL Scouting Combine, Goff still improved his draft stock with a strong showing in the positional drills. Goff also reportedly scored a 36 on his Wonderlic exam.

On April 28, 2016, Goff was selected with the first overall pick by the Los Angeles Rams in the 2016 NFL Draft. The Rams had traded up in the first round and acquired the first pick from the Tennessee Titans. Goff, Roman Gabriel, and Terry Baker share the distinction of being the only quarterbacks drafted by the Rams in the first round of the NFL Draft as a Los Angeles-based franchise. Goff was the second Rams quarterback to be taken first overall in six years; the Rams had selected Sam Bradford first overall six years earlier.

On June 9, 2016, Goff signed a four-year deal worth $27.9 million in guaranteed money, including an $18.6 million signing bonus.

On November 15, Goff was named the Rams' starting quarterback for the game against the Miami Dolphins after spending the first nine games as the backup to veteran quarterback Case Keenum. Goff then started the final seven games of the season. On November 20, 2016, he made his professional debut and first career start against the Miami Dolphins and lost 14–10, completing 17-of-31 attempts for 134 passing yards, with no touchdowns or interceptions. The following week against the New Orleans Saints, he threw his first career touchdown pass on a 24-yard completion to wide receiver Tavon Austin in the first quarter and had his first career interception in the third quarter after Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro picked off his pass attempt. Goff finished the game with 20-of-32 completed pass attempts for 214 yards and three touchdowns and one interception in a 21–49 loss.

In Week 14, Goff had 24 completions out of 41 pass attempts for 235 yards and two interceptions in a 42–14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. In addition, he had his first career rushing touchdown on a two-yard run in the fourth quarter.

In his rookie season, Goff made seven starts. The Rams lost each of those games finishing with an overall record of 4–12. He completed 112-of-205 passes for 1,089 yards, five passing touchdowns, and seven interceptions while also rushing for 16 yards and a touchdown.

2017 season

Goff entered the season with a new head coach in Sean McVay. During Week 1, he achieved his first professional victory while completing 21-of-29 passes for 306 yards and a touchdown in a 46–9 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Goff's performance against the Colts marked his first career game with at least 300 passing yards. In Week 3 against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday Night Football, Goff completed 22-of-28 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Rams to a narrow 41–39 win over the 49ers. In Week 4 against the Dallas Cowboys, Goff completed 21-of-36 passes for 255 yards and two touchdowns as the Rams won 35–30. In Week 5 against the Seattle Seahawks, Goff notably struggled as he had two interceptions, no touchdowns, 288 yards, and a 46.8 completion percentage for a 48.9 passer rating as the Rams lost 10–16. In Week 6, Goff only threw 124 yards and a touchdown to tight end Gerald Everett against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Rams 27–17 victory despite having an 86.2 passer rating. In Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals at Twickenham Stadium, Goff passed for 235 yards, a touchdown, and an interception, as the Rams shutout the Cardinals 33–0. During Week 9 against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium, Goff finished with 311 passing yards and four touchdowns as the Rams won by a score of 51–17, earning him NFC Offensive Player of the Week. During Week 10 against the Houston Texans, Goff finished with 355 passing yards and 3 touchdowns as the Rams won 33–7. In the game, he threw a 94-yard touchdown pass to Robert Woods. During Week 12 against the New Orleans Saints, Goff finished with 354 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and an interception as the Rams won 26–20. In Week 14, Goff played against the Philadelphia Eagles, going up against 2016 2nd overall pick Carson Wentz. Although passing 16-of-26 attempts, 199 yards, and two passing touchdowns, he fumbled the ball in the last minute, resulting in a 43–35 loss. Goff, even though only throwing for 120 yards, completing 14-of-21 attempts, and two touchdowns in Week 15 against the Seahawks, his team would still win in a huge 42–7 victory. During Week 16 against the Tennessee Titans, Goff finished with 301 passing yards and 4 touchdowns as the Rams won 27–23 and clinched the NFC West for the first time since 2003. Goff sat out Week 17 as a result of this.

On January 6, 2018, Goff played in his first playoff game. He completed 24-of-45 passes for 259 yards and a touchdown in a 26–13 Wild Card Round loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Overall, in the 2017 season, Goff showed significant improvement from his rookie season, with 3,804 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He led the league in yards per pass completion with 12.9. On January 22, 2018, he was named to his first Pro Bowl as an injury replacement for Carson Wentz. He was ranked the 38th best player in the league by his peers for the 2017 season.

2018 season

Goff started the 2018 season with 233 passing yards and two passing touchdowns in a 33–13 win over Oakland Raiders season opener on Monday Night Football, followed by back-to-back 354 yard games in wins over Arizona Cardinals and the cross-town rival Los Angeles Chargers. In the Chargers game, he also had a career best 80.5% completion percentage on 29–36 passing for three touchdowns and one interception. During Week 4, on Thursday Night Football in a 38–31 victory over the against the Minnesota Vikings, Goff threw for a career-high 465 yards, with five touchdowns, on 26 completions in 33 attempts, and finished with a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3. Goff's performance set the record for most passing yards and attempts while maintaining a perfect passer rating, surpassing Ken O'Brien's 32 attempts for 431 yards in 1986. (The next year, Deshaun Watson tied his record for pass attempts, but did best his record [28] for pass completions.) For his performance in Week 4, he was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week. He was later named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for September. Against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 11, Goff threw for over 400 yards and four touchdowns as the Rams defeated the Chiefs 54–51 on Monday Night Football in the third-highest-scoring NFL game in history. In Week 14 against the Chicago Bears, Goff threw for 180 yards, no touchdowns, and a career-high four interceptions as the Rams lost 15–6. Goff ended the season by throwing four touchdown passes in a 48–32 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, and finished 2018 with 4,688 yards, the second-highest single-season total in franchise history, and his 32 touchdown passes were the third-highest total among Ram quarterbacks, trailing only Hall of Famer Kurt Warner in both categories. He was selected to his second straight Pro Bowl for his performance in 2018. The Rams finished with a 13–3 record and made the playoffs with a first-round bye as the #2 seed.

In the Divisional Round against the Dallas Cowboys, he finished with 186 passing yards as the Rams won 30–22. In the NFC Championship against the New Orleans Saints, he passed for 297 yards, one touchdown, and one interception as the Rams defeated the Saints in overtime by a score of 26–23. Although overshadowed by a controversial no-call by the referee, Goff was clutch in several key plays, and became the youngest quarterback to win an NFC championship game.

Goff and the Rams advanced to Super Bowl LIII to face off against the New England Patriots. In the game which was largely dominated by both sides' defenses, Goff completed 19 of 38 passes for 229 yards and threw a costly interception to Stephon Gilmore late in the fourth quarter of the 13–3 loss. The Rams tied the 1971 Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI for the fewest points in Super Bowl history in the loss. Goff was ranked 32nd by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2019.

2019 season

On April 23, 2019, the Rams picked up the fifth-year option on Goff's contract. Five months later, he agreed to a four-year extension worth $134 million featuring $110 million guaranteed, at the time, it was an NFL record for the most guaranteed money in a contract, surpassed by Patrick Mahomes in 2020.

Goff helped lead the Rams to a 3–0 start with victories over the Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and Cleveland Browns. During Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Goff finished with a career-high 517 passing yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions as the Rams lost a shootout by a score of 40–55. He tied the NFL record for completions in a regular-season game with 45 equalling Drew Bledsoe's Week 11 performance against the Minnesota Vikings in 1994. In Week 5, against the Seattle Seahawks, he had 395 passing yards, one passing touchdown, and one interception in the 30–29 loss on Thursday Night Football. In Week 6 against the San Francisco 49ers, Goff threw for a career-low 78 passing yards in the 20–7 loss. In Week 7, against the Atlanta Falcons, he helped stop the Rams' three-game losing streak with 268 passing yards and two passing touchdowns in the 37–10 victory. In Week 8, against the Cincinnati Bengals, he had 372 passing yards and two passing touchdowns in the 24–10 victory. In Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals, Goff threw for 424 yards and two touchdowns in the 34–7 win. He won the NFC Offensive Player of the Week award for his performance. During a 49ers rematch on Saturday Night Football in Week 16, Goff finished with 323 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an interception as the Rams lost 31–34 and were eliminated from playoff contention. In the regular season finale against the Arizona Cardinals, Goff threw for 319 yards and three touchdowns during the 31–24 win. Goff finished the 2019 season with 4,638 passing yards, 22 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions as the Rams finished with a 9–7 record.

2020 season

During Sunday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1, the first ever football game to be played at SoFi Stadium, Goff finished with 275 passing yards and an interception as the Rams won 20–17.In the following week's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Goff threw for 267 yards and three touchdowns to tight end Tyler Higbee during the 37–19 win. During Week 3 against the Buffalo Bills, Goff finished with 321 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an interception as the Rams lost 32–35. The Rams overcame a 28–3 deficit to lead 32–28 before giving up the go-ahead score toward the end of the game. In Week 11 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, Goff threw for 376 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions during the 27–24 win. In Week 12 against the San Francisco 49ers, Goff threw for 198 yards, two interceptions (including a pick six), and lost a fumble during the 23–20 loss. In Week 13, against the Arizona Cardinals, he had 351 passing yards and one passing touchdown in the 38–28 victory. In Week 16 against the Seattle Seahawks, Goff threw for 234 yards and an interception as the Rams lost 20–9. Goff suffered a broken thumb during the game forcing him to miss the season finale against the Arizona Cardinals. Overall, Goff finished the 2020 season with 3,952 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions in 15 games.

In the Wild Card round against the Seahawks, Goff was cleared to play but began the game as the backup to John Wolford. Goff came in the game during the first quarter after Wolford left the game with a neck injury. In the game, Goff completed 9 of 19 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown as the Rams won 30–20. In the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Green Bay Packers, Goff completed 21 of 27 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown as the Rams were eliminated with a 32–18 loss.

Detroit Lions

On March 18, 2021, Goff, a first round pick in both 2022 and 2023, and a 2021 third round pick were traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for quarterback Matthew Stafford.

Goff made his Lions debut in the home opener against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1. In the game, Goff finished with 338 passing yards, three touchdowns, and one interception returned for a touchdown as the Lions lost 33–41 despite a late rally. In a game against his former team the Los Angeles Rams, Goff threw for 268 passing yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions as the Lions lost 19-28.

Regular season

Postseason

Rams franchise records

• Most completed passes in a single game: 45 (September 29, 2019)
• Most pass attempts in a single game: 68 (September 29, 2019)
• Most 4th quarter comebacks in a single season: 4 (2018) (tied with Norm Van Brocklin (1955), Jim Everett (1989), Marc Bulger (2003), and Sam Bradford (2012))

NFL awards

• NFC champion (2018)
• 2× Pro Bowl (2017, 2018)
• PFWA Most Improved Player (2017)
• FedEx Air Player of the Week – Week 16, 2017
• NFC Offensive Player of the Week – 2017 (Week 9), 2018 (Week 4), 2019 (Week 13)
• NFC Offensive Player of the Month – September 2018

Goff's father, Jerry Goff, is a former Major League Baseball player. In 2016, Goff appeared as a guest on the Outdoor Channel's Gridiron Outdoors, which is hosted by former Cal football quarterback Mike Pawlawski.

Goff has an enzyme deficiency that does not allow his body to break down proteins. Among the difficulties it creates is an inability to process red meat.

In the summer of 2019, Goff launched his own line of clothing called "JG16". In March 2020, he donated $250,000 to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank during the coronavirus pandemic.