Maybe this a question best answered by our Ram’s fans that have followed Goff over from LA but I brought this up last year a bit as well. At the beginning of last year, we saw a lot of dead-duck passes from Goff, like more than normal for a NFL QB. He seems to have been better this year but when I watch his ball velocity as compared to this pass, it just doesn’t seem like he has the same zip on the ball like he did. Maybe I’m just wrong or maybe it’s from that thumb injury?
From what I’ve seen his arm does look weaker from when he was in LA. I wasn’t sure if it was due to the lack of recievers DET had and not being able to go deep as often.
Goff was never Mahomes or Allen but he definitely had one of the better arms at one point. Not sure whats going on there.
I know of no reason to think Goff’s arm has weakened since LA or since he was drafted - and, contrary to popular opinion, he had one of the strongest arms measured at the combine. Not only his year, but across years. Certainly top-10%.
In fact, from 2008-2020, among QBs we’ve ever heard of, only Josh Allen (62 mph) managed to register an appreciably higher velocity than JG (58 mph). The vast majority the QBs measured over those years had lower velocities. (Stafford didn’t throw.) That includes:
Justin Herbert Oregon 55 (Left) 54 (Right)
Jalen Hurts Oklahoma 54 (Left) 51 (Right)
Gardner Minshew Washington State 55 (Left) 53 (Right)
Daniel Jones Duke 53 (Left) 54 (Right)
Mike White Western Kentucky 53 (Left) 55 (Right)
Lamar Jackson Louisville 49 (Left) 49 (Right)
Patrick Mahomes Texas Tech 55 (Left) 55 (Right)
Mitch Trubisky North Carolina 51 (Left) 50 (Right)
Deshaun Watson Clemson 45 (Left) 45 (Right)
Carson Wentz, North Dakota State 57
Jameis Winston, Florida State 55
Blake Bortles, Central Florida 56
Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois 56
Geno Smith, West Virginia 55
As @Dolphinboy123 says above, I think Goff focuses more on touch than velocity, which is why he throws such a “catchable” ball. But he can and does hum it into a small window when he has to.
Goff has an arm but he has touch, and I think he relies a bit more on having a rhythm and rapport with receivers. He can chuck it, he just needs to have a rhythm with them.
He has become best friends with st brown… I feel like he always looks for him first, along with reynolds. Jamo will get there.
Also too I feel like Goff plays it safe. He doesn’t force anything and will always live for another down. Stafford for example was the gunslinger and would just gun it into where he wanted the completion to go which worked out ok sometimes but also resulted in some bad plays and most notably his pick sixes. It was obvious when the team was not doing well he would force throws when he shouldn’t have thinking he could just gun it… and at times he would gun screen passes which I never understood.
Goff has way more touch. Not the strength but he can still sling it and get distance but I think he needs to have a good rapport with his receivers. But what he’s been proving this year is he won’t force throws and he won’t turn the ball over, which honestly is an awesome trait to have. He might not make incredible miraculous throws but he won’t throw terrible throws or force anything. Stafford always forced throws sometimes to his detriment
We are lucky we are getting Goff in his prime or approaching his prime.
I’m not seeing a decrease, more of a comfort thing perhaps, Which I expect will work it’s way out, that rope to TK for the win a few weeks ago that as far as I’m concerned got this whole thing rolling definitely had a little mustard on it
Goff has a great arm and can make pretty much all the throws. And what I love about him is he doesn’t force anything, he never guns it when he doesn’t have to, and he has a very nice touch on his passes. When he is on he’s on. Yet even when he’s not, he doesn’t make mistakes and turn the ball over, he just kills it.
That’s my opinion of him after just watching him in Detroit. He’s completely different from Stafford… but as good as Stafford was he made a lot of really bad throws and bad decisions… at the same time he made some great plays and great throws only he could make.
All that being said I will take Goff who has better touch and better overall awareness. And I think he’s a different kind of leader than Stafford and is only now truly coming into his own.
I definitely agree with you about the touch based on receiver. I have seen QB’s zip it into the fullback like a howitzer…from 3 yards away…with predictable results. Ball pops off the pads, up into the air, interception. Goff doesn’t do that, he throws a very catchable ball.
I think the mental damage done by Fisher and McVay is close to undone. He’s a different and more confident QB than he was 16 months ago. More like the kid from Cal that went 1OA and less like Captain Checkdown. He still makes some “Oh crap!” throws, but almost every QB does.
For sure. I can’t speak to his time at Cal or even with his time at the rams… I remember him when the rams were good and rolling, which a lot of people will say he had an OL and a good running game… which is fine. I think every qb should have that and every competent team should have that.
I do think he came to the Lions with some mental damage and some low confidence, and I wonder how much Campbell has changed that and instilled the confidence back in him. He’s definitely had it through his career… and he’s still young! Maybe being through so many ups and downs in his early 20s messed with his head a bit?
But ever since Campbell took over playcalling he has looked like a different qb. Remember when we beat the Vikings last year and he threw that TD to St Brown and the first person he ran to was Campbell? That spoke volumes to me.
I think these dudes are on the same page and we are lucky to have Goff entering his prime, and also to have offensive gurus in Dan Campbell and Ben Johnson.
What you see of him in college is a QB that’s fearless and trusts his receivers Throwing deep, Throwing contested balls. He lost that for awhile. I think it got coached out of him, and I think Anthony Lynn wasn’t helping in that regard. Can’t wait to see him unleash some of these balls to Jamo. I do believe the best is yet to come
