LA Rams and Goff need to focus on future, not past

Read the small print

How do we know? The values of competing bids for Matthew Stafford were spectacular. The Carolina Panthers reportedly offered the eighth pick in the 2021 NFL Draft plus a late-round pick.  Per ESPN’s John Keim, Washington offered a first and a third-round pick for Stafford.

Yes, the Rams worked hard to up their offer, and they did.

But the offer they packaged together included Goff. So the Detroit Lions had multiple offers on the table. They have the option to avoid all of the salary cap hullabaloos and elect to go with a picks-only offer.  And there it was. The Detroit Lions could have avoided Jared Goff and all of the drama that comes with a young but highly paid NFL quarterback.

Detroit Lions GM Brad Holmes came from the front office of the LA Rams. He would not be fooled by the Rams trying to sneak in a salary cap dump. Many believe that Goff was only that. I disagree. Goff is still improving, as most quarterbacks do. Many scoff at the idea that quarterbacks need six to ten years for everything to ‘click’. But having looked at the careers of dozens of successful quarterbacks, that pattern is consistent. Goff simply needed more time, and the Rams were out of time, and patience.