By Blessing 
The Fantasy World’s Glaring Blind Spot on Jared Goff in 2025
Jared Goff should still be a serviceable fantasy quarterback in 2025. But pretending everything is sunshine and touchdowns is doing fantasy managers a disservice. To ignore the negatives in his situation is to only tell half the story.
Let’s not forget—Goff’s journey in Detroit didn’t start off great. But in recent years, he’s turned things around in a big way. With Ben Johnson rising through the offensive coaching ranks, Goff quietly became one of the most productive quarterbacks in football. Over the past three seasons, he’s consistently finished as a top-10 fantasy QB.
But here’s the twist in 2025: Ben Johnson is gone, now leading the Chicago Bears as their head coach. That leaves Goff in a very different situation this year, and the shift is being brushed off far too casually in some fantasy circles.
Now, it’s worth noting that the Lions didn’t do a full reset at offensive coordinator. John Morton, who was on staff in 2022, has stepped in. There’s at least some continuity there, and that’s a point in Goff’s favor.
Still, anyone who’s rostered Goff in fantasy knows he’s a mixed bag. Some weeks he lights up the scoreboard when you least expect it; other times, he completely disappears in matchups that seemed like locks. He doesn’t offer rushing upside—a major knock in today’s fantasy landscape—and his performance tends to swing significantly based on whether he’s playing at home or outdoors.
So yes, Goff might still be a value, and you could argue he’s overlooked. But it’s also true that his fantasy outlook in 2025 comes with more uncertainty than last year. A big part of that is the sudden retirement of Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow—an anchor on the Lions’ offensive line.
That retirement hasn’t gotten nearly enough attention. Goff is known for being “incredibly pressure sensitive,” as ESPN’s Mina Kimes recently pointed out. Losing Ragnow—especially up the middle—could spell trouble for Goff’s comfort in the pocket.
Selective Optimism from the Fantasy Community
Despite all this, Goff was recently featured in Bleacher Report’s list of “veterans fantasy managers shouldn’t overlook” in 2025, compiled by Alex Kay. The article reads like a glowing endorsement—but notably skips over some very relevant facts.
For starters, the piece was published after Ragnow’s retirement, yet it never mentions that crucial development. It also doesn’t address Detroit’s tougher 2025 schedule, which includes more outdoor games and a date with the AFC North—a notoriously gritty division. Instead, Kay focused entirely on how Goff is being disrespected by his current average draft position (ADP).
“There’s no indication that the 30-year-old will regress in 2025, although fantasy managers seem to be expecting a backslide based on his middling ADP of 85 and QB10 status that places him behind far more inconsistent signal-callers such as Kyler Murray.”
“No indication”? Really? While it’s possible Goff maintains his form, dismissing any risk of regression seems willfully blind to the shifting landscape around him. Frankly, QB10 feels like a fair price tag—he’s being drafted where he should be.
Kay also called Goff “consistent” in 2024, which again feels a little too generous. He cited Fantasy Pros’ “Quality Starts” metric to back it up:
“Goff rang up 11 quality or better starts in 2024, just one fewer than league MVP and No. 2 overall fantasy point-producer Josh Allen. He was especially reliable down the stretch, finishing with four consecutive top-eight performances from Weeks 14 to 17, helping many of his managers claim fantasy championships.”
But let’s unpack what “quality” means here. According to Fantasy Pros, a QB qualifies for a quality start if he scores more than 15.3 fantasy points in a game. For context, rookie Caleb Williams averaged 15.3 points per game last year—ranking as QB25. So, yeah, that’s a pretty low bar for what counts as “quality.”
Goff needed the highest completion rate of his career and a career-high 37 touchdowns just to land as QB6 in 2024 fantasy rankings. That’s impressive, but also feels like everything went right. Betting on a repeat while ignoring the very real changes—like a weaker O-line and no Ben Johnson—just isn’t realistic.
Kay may believe Goff is undervalued, but any full analysis has to account for the cracks that have started to form in his support system. Whether Goff shines or stumbles in 2025 will likely depend on how he adapts without the cushion he’s enjoyed the last few seasons.