Notes: Jared Goff threw 1 route better than any other NFL QB in 2022

Last year was one of Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff’s best career seasons in the NFL. He finished in the top 10 in yards (sixth), passing touchdowns (t-fifth), passer rating (ninth), and QBR (fifth) on the way to his third the Pro Bowl.

It also turns out he was uniquely talented at throwing one specific route: the comeback. If you don’t know, a comeback route is a 10 to 15-yard route that’s ended by the receiver turning back to the quarterback and angling their route to the sidelines. Think a curl route, but instead of curling to the inside, you curl to the sidelines.

This week, PFF listed which quarterbacks performed the best at throwing each receiver route in 2022, and Goff was listed as the best comeback route passer.

“Only two quarterbacks earned passing grades of at least 80.0 on comeback routes — Jared Goff and Zach Wilson,” PFF’s Jim Wyman wrote. “Goff attempted only three comebacks, completing two for 32 yards, but all three attempts earned a positive PFF grade.

Obviously, three passes is a pretty ridiculously small sample size. However, the good news doesn’t stop there. Goff was also one of the more efficient quarterbacks up the middle of the field. Warren Sharp ranked every quarterback by their expected points added (EPA) on passes between the numbers, and Goff came in at sixth overall, behind some pretty impressive quarterbacks:

Without a doubt, Goff grew a lot as a passer and leader of an offense. Hopefully, that growth will continue into 2023.

• Aidan Hutchinson didn’t make ESPN’s list of top 10 edge defenders (as voted by NFL executives), but he did get an honorable mention, meaning he earned some votes. One NFC executive gave him a pretty solid compliment.

“He’s more than a try-hard guy. He made plays where he’s baiting the quarterback into an interception by the sideline. He’s an athlete.”

• We’ll have more on the entire podcast later, but Lions general manager Brad Holmes joined Peter Schrager’s “The Season“ podcast. Here’s an excerpt on him explaining how he fell in love with Jahmyr Gibbs. You can listen to the entire podcast here:

• Nolan Bianchi of the Detroit News explains why Kerby Joseph’s increase in trash talk is the next step in his evolution as a young defensive back.

• It’s July and we’re all itching for some football. So let’s watch this nice breakdown of a simple Lions run (and Penei Sewell domination) from The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner:

• Lions Wire’s Jeff Risdon took a look how teams who finished the 2021 season with a 9-8 record fared in 2022.