Getty Former NFL MVP Cam Newton referred to Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff as a game manager.
With only four weeks left in the NFL regular season, the MVP discussion has really begun to heat up. To win the prestigious NFL award, a player usually has to be a true difference maker. Former NFL MVP winner Cam Newton argued that a quartet of consensus top 10 quarterbacks in the league don’t fit the bill as a difference maker.
Included on Newton’s list of “game managers” and not “difference makers” behind center, along with three other very notable names, was Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
“Brock [Purdy], they aren’t winning because of him,” Newton said of the 49ers on his podcast 4th and 1 with Cam Newton. “He’s managing the game, and if we were to put that in its own right as game managers, Brock Purdy, Tua Tagovailoa, Jared Goff and really, Dak Prescott.
“These are game managers. They aren’t difference makers.”
“Tua Tagovailoa and Brock Purdy are ‘game managers,’ not ‘difference makers’ according to Cam Newton,” The Palm Beach Post’s Joe Schad tweeted as a caption to Newton’s video.
Tua Tagovailoa and Brock Purdy are “game mangers,” not “difference makers” according to Cam Newton
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Newton further explained that NFL coaches ask game managing quarterbacks not to lose the game. Whereas game changers are the reason their teams win the game.
Lions’ Jared Goff a Game Manager?
The phrase “game manager” has been an insult to quarterbacks for decades. But the truth is, all NFL signal callers manager the game to some degree. That’s the quarterback’s job.
That just doesn’t win MVP awards. Statistics do that.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen has finished second and third in MVP voting during his career. He’s a “game-changer,” not a “game manager” under Newton’s definitions.
But if Allen “managed” some situations better and didn’t lead the NFL with 14 interceptions, perhaps the Bills wouldn’t hold a disappointing 7-6 record entering Week 15.
When Goff is at his best, he’s creating plays down field while avoiding interceptions. Last season, he didn’t throw a pick in the final nine games.
That could be considered just managing the game. But Goff also had 15 touchdowns and averaged nearly 7.7 yards per attempt during that nine-game stretch.
Can Goff Re-enter the NFL MVP Discussion?
Goff was arguably in the MVP conversation around the midseason point this year. In the first six games this season, he had 11 touchdowns and 3 interceptions with close to an 8 yards per attempt average.
But turnovers have plagued Goff since Week 7. In the past seven contests, Goff has had just two games without a giveaway.
His production has also dropped significantly. Goff has 10 touchdowns and 7 interceptions with a 7 yards per attempt average in the past seven games.
If anything, though, the drastic change in his play proves the Lions are asking Goff to be more than a “game manager.” Detroit started 5-1 behind Goff’s hot start. But the team is 4-3 since then.
Clearly, the Lions are counting on Goff to make plays and avoid turnovers in order to win. That doesn’t really sound like Newton’s definition of a game manager.
With four games left on the schedule, though, the MVP race is far from complete. Goff may not be able to win the award, but he could probably earn some MVP votes if he finishes the season very strongly and leads the Lions to their first division title since 1993.
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Former NFL MVP Takes a Shot at Lions QB Jared Goff