Should Lions Really Entertain Extending Jared Goff?

Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes revealed Tuesday afternoon on 97.1 The Ticket the franchise has had an "internal dialogue" with quarterback Jared Goff's agent about an extension.

Is that really the right direction for the franchise? Yes. But also, maybe not?

Here's What We Know

As it stands currently, Goff is on the Lions books until 2024 with a $31 million cap hit this season and a $32 million hit next year.

Goff of course, came to Detroit in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams. While the Rams aren't looking too pretty right now and the Lions have invested it return capital wisely, the Rams did win a Super Bowl thanks to the acquisition of Matthew Stafford. For the Lions to truly come out as winners, the franchise has to get close to contention too, right?

For what it's worth on Goff's end, the team has gotten significantly better in his time in Detroit. From 3-10-1 as a starter in 2021, the Lions rebounded in a big way in 2022 finishing with a winning record just short of the playoffs at 9-8.

Goff himself played his part, throwing for nearly 1,200 more yards and 10 more touchdowns while keeping the turnovers to a minimum. He was efficient, but far from an elite playmaker. But can Lions fans truly give Goff that much of the credit?

After all, it's the teambuilding of Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell that really turned the Lions around. Adding pieces like Penei Sewell and Aidan Hutchinson has arguably done more for Detroit than Goff has or will.

Interestingly, Holmes and his staff drafted Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker with the 68th overall pick in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft over the weekend. While he's a bit older than a conventional rookie at 25 years old, Hooker is a solid enough prospect to have a real chance at taking the Lions to the next level.

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Stick To What You Know

Lest we forget, however, Jared Goff has played in a Super Bowl himself. While the Los Angeles Rams team that Goff led to Super Bowl LIII wasn't quite as talented as the one Stafford did win a championship with, Goff played his part on an elite team.

Yes, Goff is not an elite quarterback - but in the world of the NFC, he's actually quite respectable. Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Russell Wilson have all recently left the conference. Jalen Hurts and Dak Prescott are the most elite quarterbacks in the NFC. Then it's a hodgepodge of immobile game managers such as Goff and Kirk Cousins and exciting youth like Justin Fields and Bryce Young.

The team around Goff is becoming a real threat in a division that is wide open and a conference that is comparatively weak to the AFC, especially at the quarterback position.

It's probably frowned upon, so forgive my naivety, but the Lions have as good a shot as any team in the NFC to challenge the Philadelphia Eagles. That's not to say the Lions are the second-best team - no, absolutely not. But Detroit has pieces, particularly on offense.

That puts Goff in a distribution role, which was where he played his best in Los Angeles. With more and more talent to go along with his experience, the answer on whether the Lions should stick it out with Goff on another contract is actually a fairly easy yes.