The Lions won three of their last six games to enter the offseason with some positive energy.
Quarterback Jared Goff was a significant part of that surge, as Detroit won each of his last two starts. Goff missed some time while on the COVID-19 list and with a knee injury.
The quarterback finished the year completing 67 percent of his passes for 3,245 yards with 19 touchdowns, eight interceptions, and six lost fumbles.
But in his last four starts, Goff threw for 965 yards with nine touchdowns and two picks — good for a 103.3 passer rating.
In his Tuesday press conference, Lions General Manager Brad Holmes said he was proud of how Goff showed resiliency throughout the year.
“You talk about will, talk about grit, that’s why he fit from the very get-go,” Holmes said. “And the success he had late, it all came from that — because he had rough patches. He had some adversity that he had to fight through. And I give him all the credit in the world that he stayed the course. And some tweaks were made, some changes were made, some reinforcements and players emerged. But he played really good football.
“And it wasn’t a surprise that he played good football, I guess because of my history with him. I’ve seen him play some of his best football. So that wasn’t a surprise. But I was more proud [that] he showed that resiliency and mental toughness to push through. And he played good football the last half of the season.”
Holmes was the Rams’ director of college scouting when Los Angeles drafted Goff at No. 1 overall in 2016 — a role he held until Detroit hired him as G.M. last year.
Goff’s contract means he’s likely back with the Lions next year. But if he continues playing at a high level with head coach Dan Campbell as a play-caller, the Lions could be on the way to competing in 2022.