Getty Jared Goff lines up to fire a pass against the Ravens in 2021.
The Detroit Lions’ offense has had ups and downs early in the 2021 season, but amid all of that trouble, the team has shown some signs of life periodically during the first three weeks of the year.
Quarterback Jared Goff thinks the team is closing in on putting a complete effort together, and that would be very good news for a team that might need to score a bit more in order to sustain themselves and help their team find the needed inches to win on the field.
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Speaking with the media on Wednesday, September 29, Goff discussed where he believes the offense is at, and as he said, it’s more about trying to continue to improve and translating it to the field during games than anything else. He feels as if the team is getting closer to being able to do that consistently.
“I think really close. It’s a constant ‘how do we get better today, how do we get better next day.’ It’s always that way. But you feel close, you always do,” Goff told the media. “We have to do it, we have to put it on the field and do it on game days on Sundays and make it come to life. I do feel like we’re close to doing that and putting four quarters together.”
As for why the Lions offense has struggled to put one of those complete games together so far, Goff admitted there are plenty of reasons in addition to their own problems, including the opposition playing well.
“I don’t know if it’s one thing. It’s always a multitude of things, sometimes it’s penalties, sometimes it’s lack of execution, sometimes a defense is playing well. It’s a multitude of things. Obviously, the good offenses, it doesn’t happen very often so we need to limit that and get better,” he said.
When an offense does start clicking on the field, Goff admitted the feeling is second to none for a quarterback and a team.
“It feels great man, that’s the way it’s supposed to go. It’s what we hope to get to pretty soon here. It’s all momentum,” he said. “It’s part of the game and I think every team has it that way where you start moving the ball, you start throwing completions, you start running the ball. It builds momentum for the rest of the game and tends to lead to good things.”
While Detroit’s offense has been far from the problem, most folks can see they have not been consistent enough. That’s what the Lions and Goff are looking to change in the coming weeks. As he said, it might only be a matter of time before Detroit finds a way to get there.
Lions Offense Statistically Solid Thus Far in 2021
It isn’t as if the Lions have been terrible thus far during the season. Detroit has the 17th rated total offense in the league, and has gone for 353 yards per-game. The team’s rushing attack has been solid, going for 105.7 yards per-game and 3 touchdowns which is good for 14th in the league. The passing attack has gone for 247.3 yards per-game and 5 touchdowns, also good for 14th in the league. Goff, D’Andre Swift, Jamaal Williams and T.J. Hockenson have all looked like the major weapons thus far, with the offensive line also playing a starring role in giving the offense time to operate.
If the Lions can figure things out on offense even more, the team could be even better than they have been with regards to the stats.
Goff: Lions Optimistic Despite Past Results
Detroit is 0-3 on the season, and as a result, there could be a temptation for some to panic about the direction of the team. Goff didn’t seem too worried about getting off the losing side of things this season, and as he said, the team is constantly preparing to win games on the field.
“We’re trying to win every week. Of course you have to get the first one before you get the second one. This week’s hopefully the week to do it and we’ll be ready to go. We’re an optimistic group, we’re a resilient group. I don’t think we’re fazed right now by the past. We’re ready to go,” Goff said.
Looking forward to the future is a good way to find solutions to the problems of the present. That’s what the Lions and Goff hope they can do on offense to get a little more consistent and find a way to win some games as a result.
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