Jared Goff ‘empowered’ by collaborative efforts with Detroit Lions coaches

When Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff first spoke with his new head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes, he called their demeanor a “breath of fresh air” and even went as far as saying “this is where I’m supposed to be.”

Of course, what else is a recently-traded player supposed to say? Being shipped can be a tough experience for a player who was at the top of the league just a couple years ago. Anything less than a complete buy in at the very beginning would be a bad look for a 26-year-old quarterback.

But now Goff has had a couple months to work with his new coaching staff, and it appears that enthusiasm has not waned a bit. Speaking specifically of Campbell and offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn, Goff admitted this week that their collaborative efforts have reenergized him.

“Dan and A. Lynn have really empowered me to—what do I want? What do I like? How do I want to see it? How do we want to do things? And are constantly bouncing things off me, and I’m constantly bouncing things off them,” Goff said. “I think that’s been a healthy relationship and something that’s been fun for me to experience and be a part of guys that are really wanting to hear from me, wanting to hear what I like.”

Obviously, it’s no secret that there was some level of fallout between Goff and his former head coach with the Los Angeles Rams, Sean McVay. And while his comments this week could certainly be construed as a veiled complaint of McVay, twice Goff clarified that the statement was not an indictment of his history, but rather an indication that things are off to a positive start with his new relationships in Detroit.

“I’m not saying that in any regard to previous experiences,” Goff said. “I’m not saying it like that. I’m saying it’s been great. I’ve had experiences where it’s has been like that and where it hasn’t throughout my career and even in college, and I think here, it’s been the positive side of that.”

As for how that collaboration is manifesting itself in the playbook, Goff admitted Lynn has a system he wants to run. The Lions quarterback isn’t the one writing plays or creating an entire scheme. Instead, his input is valued on certain details.

“There is a system in place that they are putting in place, but at the same time, there’s a lot of asking on little details, ‘Do you want it like this? Do you want it like this?’ Goff explained. “Or, furthermore, I go to A. Lynn or Dan and tell them I feel a certain way about something and they either agree with me or they don’t, but it’s a good conversation and usually pretty collaborative.”

Ultimately, Goff has been impressed with the entire coaching staff. Their experiences as former players has made communication easy and collaboration natural.

“I’ve had former players coach me in the past, but never this many,” Goff said. Later adding, “It’s easy to communicate, it’s easy for them to understand it from a player’s view.”