Detroit Lions camp preview: Could Jared Goff make a serious run at NFL MVP in 2026?
Allen Park — Following the 2022 season, with the Detroit Lions holding the No. 6 pick in the draft as a carryover asset from the Matthew Stafford trade a little less than two years earlier, general manager Brad Holmes was asked about the possibility of using the selection on a quarterback.
While not outright dismissing the idea at that time, Holmes prefaced his response by noting, “It’s a lot easier to get worse at quarterback than to get better at quarterback in this league.”
Despite coming off one of the better years of his career, and serving as a Pro Bowl alternate, the fan base remained split on Jared Goff’s future as the franchise’s solution. In the seasons since, he’s quelled most of that doubt.
In 2023, Goff led the Lions to the brink of the Super Bowl. The next two seasons, he posted the best passer ratings of his career. He’s thrown for more than 4,500 yards and at least 30 touchdowns each of the past three years, while leading a top-five scoring offense four consecutive seasons.
The Lions did draft a quarterback the year Holmes made his better/worse comment, trading up to snag Hendon Hooker early in the third round. He’s come and gone, signing with his fourth team this offseason. Goff, meanwhile, inked a lucrative extension ahead of the 2024 campaign, locking him up through 2028.
Hooker’s failure to develop as expected has left the backup spot a little unsettled, but that’s been of little consequence since the highly durable Goff hasn’t missed a game since 2021, his first year with the Lions.
That’s comforting stability at the game’s most important position. So what, if anything, should we be monitoring with the team’s quarterbacks heading into training camp later this month?