Getty Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff wanted no part of a question about what FOX Sports' Skip Bayless thinks about the NFC championship matchup.
There are plenty of instances in sports where athletes use media criticism as motivation. But athletes often “block out the outside noise” too. In so many words, that’s what Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff is doing with FOX Sports’ Skip Bayless this week.
Actually, it appears Goff does that with Bayless all the time.
On January 23, radio hosts Doug Karsch and Scott Anderson mentioned potential bulletin board material to Goff while the quarterback was making his weekly appearance on 97.1 The Ticket.
At first, Goff expressed some interest. But when Karsch revealed the bulletin board material was a Bayless tweet, Goff didn’t want to hear the question.
“No, I don’t care about anything he says. You can stop now,” Goff said. “Anything those guys say on daytime TV, you can skip over that.”
Bayless hasn’t had any recent criticism of Goff, but he did take a shot at the Lions even after the team beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC divisional round, 31-23. The victory clinched Detroit’s first NFC championship berth in 32 years.
“Congrats, Lions,” Bayless tweeted on January 21. “You have won the right to get blown out at San Francisco. But hey, great year.”
Congrats, Lions. You have won the right to get blown out at San Francisco. But hey, great year.
Detroit Lions Enter NFC Championship as Significant Underdogs
Multiple Lions writers referred to Goff’s reaction to Bayless’ tweet as the perfect response. But the truth is, most of the public appears to agree with Bayless.
The Lions opened as 6.5-point underdogs against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game. According to ESPN Bet, they are now 7-point underdogs.
That’s the third-largest spread for an NFC championship over the last 16 years according to Vegas Insider.
The second-largest NFC championship game spread during that stretch also involved the 49ers. Vegas Insider reported San Francisco as a 7.5-point favorite against the Green Bay Packers in the 2019-20 NFC championship game.
Looking at the two teams’ histories, it does appear to be a lopsided matchup. The 49ers have been in four of the past five NFC championships. The Lions have only been to two since the creation of the game in 1970.
But both the 49ers and Lions went 12-5 during the regular season. They also each finished in the top 5 in offensive yards and points scored.
Lions CB Brian Branch’s Warning for San Francisco 49ers
Bayless and other media members may be giving the Lions some bulletin board material. But Lions rookie cornerback Brian Branch may have done the same for the 49ers.
Branch didn’t disrespect their team, but he did appear to fire a warning to the 49ers through reporters.
“San Fran is a really good team, but I feel like, shoot, we’re a really good team too,” Branch told the media, via SI.com’s All Lions’ John Maakaron. “If we’re clicking, there’s gonna be a rude awakening.”
Branch, though, isn’t the only Lions player with confidence about the matchup. While he may have gone a little further with his comments, Goff and other Detroit players have often repeated, “We’re not done” after significant milestones, including playoff victories, this season.
The Lions and 49ers will kick off at 6:30 pm ET on January 28.