By Moses Joshua 
Despite leading Detroit to historic success, the Lions’ quarterback still fights for national recognition
Jared Goff has been at the heart of Detroit’s football resurgence. In just four years as the Lions’ starting quarterback, he’s guided the team to back-to-back NFC North titles, two playoff victories, and an NFL-best 15–2 regular-season record in 2024. Yet, when it comes to national perception, Goff continues to find himself in a strange middle ground—respected by some, doubted by others.
Tiered but Undervalued
As the 2025 season approaches, The Athletic released its annual NFL quarterback tiers—rankings based on votes from league coaches, executives, and general managers. Goff landed in Tier 2, ranking as the eighth-best quarterback overall and third within that tier behind Justin Herbert and Jayden Daniels.
The top tier was reserved for names like Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, Josh Allen, and Lamar Jackson. While being considered a top-10 quarterback is no slight, the voting breakdown reveals lingering skepticism.
Eight of the 50 voters placed Goff in Tier 3, with one voter summing up their reasoning bluntly:
“He’s a 3 because he needs the run game, he needs a defense, he needs all of those things.”
Pockets of High Praise
Not everyone was dismissive. Goff received five Tier 1 votes, including one from an NFL head coach who compared him favorably to one of the league’s elite.
> “Goff and Burrow are probably the two best anticipation throwers that I have seen lately,” the coach said. “You might put him at a 2 from a pure quarterback standpoint—he struggles to extend plays—but the guy has played at a 1 level for three years.”
Such recognition highlights a truth Lions fans already know: Goff’s precision passing and decision-making have been instrumental in the team’s rise.
Growth in Key Areas
Since arriving in Detroit in the 2021 trade that sent Matthew Stafford to Los Angeles, Goff has steadily refined his game. Ball security—a weakness earlier in his career—has become a strength. A defensive coordinator who participated in the rankings noted the change:
“He has definitely grown over the last couple of years. Early in his career, if you got him to be just a dropback quarterback, he would make a lot more mistakes. He is better in that area as far as protecting the football.”
That progress, paired with Detroit’s offensive weapons and dominant run game, has kept Goff operating at a high level.
The Road Ahead Without Ben Johnson
The 2025 season brings a new challenge—Detroit’s first year without offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, the architect of the Lions’ high-powered attack. Critics predict a step back, but Goff’s track record suggests otherwise. He’s already proven capable of exceeding expectations, and the pieces remain in place for another deep playoff run.
For all the chatter about tiers and rankings, one reality remains: Jared Goff wins football games. Whether or not the rest of the league chooses to acknowledge it, Detroit’s quarterback has earned far more than begrudging respect.