LA Rams QB Goff’s path from good to great happens in 2020

Good quarterbacks make successful plays. Great quarterbacks make plays successful. This season, LA Rams QB Jared Goff evolves into a great quarterback.

The LA Rams offense has been a well-oiled offensive machine since the arrival of head coach Sean McVay. The offensive line had been sound, the running game had chewed up both yardage and the game clock. McVay took over a team with a quarterback already in place who could run that offense successfully. Quarterback Jared Goff did so, You see, good quarterbacks can make successful plays. While young, Goff is very good.

But 2019 arrived, and suddenly Goff found himself as one of the highest-paid young quarterbacks in the NFL. Simultaneously, he found himself behind a poorly-ranked offensive line and a struggling ground game.  In that situation, the offensive playbook shifted heavily towards the passing game.  While Goff responded, he was far less efficient at doing so. After all, a good quarterback can only do, so much.

Improve the offensive line, or the offensive game plan

The Rams have two choices. They can redirect financial resources away from their quarterback to invest in upgrading offensive linemen. Or the team can play the hand that was handed over to them but do a better job of managing the shortcomings.  All teams are flawed somewhere. The Rams cannot have it all, and that’s by the design of the NFL.

At the onset, the Rams offensive brain trust deliberated. Being a very good quarterback is just not enough for the LA Rams offense in 2020. It’s time for Goff to push towards being a great quarterback. Great quarterbacks turn busted plays into huge gains. Great quarterbacks get faster, get mobile, get out of the way of the pass rush. To be a great quarterback, Jared Goff would need another set of eyes. So the Rams hired former Washington offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell. He will be the eyes and ears of Goff. Now the Rams have a game plan, but how will it work?