Netflix 1st trailer for QB Season 2 reveals how Jared Goff fails accountability

When the Los Angeles Rams drafted rookie quarterback prospect Jared Goff wth the first overall pick of the 2016 NFL Draft, the team spent a king's ransom on the right to trade up to that first overall pick to select him. While he struggled in his rookie season, finishing with a record of 0-7, his struggles did compel the Rams to fire HC Jeff Fisher and hire former Washington Commander OC Sean McVay as the new head coach.

Coach McVay instantly and accurately diagnosed the problem with Jared Goff. He signed quarterback Dan Orlovsky to specifically mentor Goff, teaching him how to understand defensive concepts, study video footage, and interpret keys and indications to allow him to flourish in the pocket.

Curiously, it worked to perfection. Orlovsky was the perfect choice because he was able to become a tutor who could explain the basic NFL concepts and terminology to allow him to understand his role at the level of an NFL quarterback. It was a tale of the miracles that HC Sean McVay created on the Rams roster in 2017, which was not publicly shared until 2025.

See for yourself.

So, let's sum it up. The Rams traded a small fortune of NFL draft picks to draft QB Jared Goff. After struggling in his rookie year, the Rams hired a veteran quarterback to tutor him and teach him NFL terminology and techniques. But the real kicker to all of this is the fact that after the Rams competed in Super Bowl LIII, they were more than happy to extend QB Jared Goff on a monster contract.

But contracts are not rewards for the past. Millions of dollars come with expectations, and the Rams had several significant expectations required of Jared Goff. But rather than show improvement, Goff regressed. So much so that we asked the question: Why do Rams regress after they get paid? Of the Rams' veteran offensive players who were extended with massive pay raises: RB Todd Gurley, WR Brandin Cooks, and QB Jared Goff; all three significantly underperformed in 2020.

The Rams traded Cooks, released Gurley, and laid down an offseason plan for Jared Goff to improve his ability to make off-platform and off-schedule throws. But Jared Goff regressed again in 2020. That led to the blockbuster trade in 2021, in which the Rams sent QB Jared Goff, a 2021 third-round, a 2022 first-round, and a 2023 first-round pick to the Detroit Lions for QB Matthew Stafford.

The Lions were not trading for Jared Goff. The Rams were trading for Matthew Stafford. So I almost fell out of my chair when Netflix Sports released the new trailer for Quarterback Season 2. Why? Just check out how they are selling this one.

As soon as QB Jared Goff claims, “This is what it feels like to truly be wanted and to have these guys behind you,” I had to do a double-take. Seriously?

No NFL player is a victim just because they are traded

Let's be clear. NFL players' lives and the lives of every family member will always be strained to the limit and quite difficult because players simply cannot control the team, the location, or the duration of their NFL careers. Fans see the most recognizable players and their very lucrative contracts and imagine that playing in the NFL is a quick way to easy street.

But a deep dive into an NFL roster during training camp tells a different story. Of the 90 players who make an NFL roster this time of year, roughly 40 percent of those players will be cut before the season starts. Of those players who are released, roughly 40 percent of those players will be signed to a modest paycheck to compete on the practice squad. Of the players that do make an NFL roster, many will be seriously injured during the season. Some will be cut.

Many will not step onto the football field at all, while others will play only after the game and or season have already been decided. Playing football is not a birthright. It's a privilege. And for those players who do start and do end up signing quite lucrative contracts, it's because the fans are paying to see that player perform up to or above expectations.

And it's something that all NFL fan bases expect. When Goff became the starting quarterback for the Detroit Lions, he was not met with a warm reception from everyone.

It's an emotionally-charged narrative to attract views and get clicks and likes from Netflix Sports right now. But that is the name of the game nowadays, isn't it? We talk about the elements that add to the narrative, but gloss over the facts that throw the narrative off the rails. But has it all been roses and golden carriages for Goff with the Detroit Lions brass?

Don't confuse locker room motivation for reality

Hey, it's easy to craft a storyline if you are the director, producer, and editor. If you film enough footage, you can provide enough compelling visual evidence to say anything you want. And if that video footage just happens to occur in the Detroit Lions locker room after a gutsy win by the Lions, you are bound to get plenty of appreciative comments to and about quarterback Jared Goff:

What a moment, indeed. Just a moment. A drop of time in the river. So, were the Detroit Lions convinced that Jared Goff was their guy after trading for him? Er, not exactly. Here is Lions GM Brad Holmes stating that the Lions remained in the quarterback market.

If this is what Jared Goff calls "it feels like to truly be wanted," then he had a tough childhood. And it seems to be selective memory, and perhaps even amnesia, that has driven the amount of effort given by the Los Angeles Rams to acquire and upgrade Goff to succeed in the NFL. But that effort did not enable Goff to achieve the expected results with the Rams.

And those same shortcomings are beginning to surface as Goff has seemingly hit his plateau in the Lions' offense:

Hey, I hope Jared Goff has success (particularly when the Lions face any NFC West Division rivals), but I dispute that he was not wanted with the Los Angeles Rams. I also dispute that everyone associated with the Detroit Lions football organization rolled out the red carpet from the moment that Goff arrived and for every day since then.

Jared Goff is a very good NFL quarterback who has limits. Now that the Detroit Lions are competing in the NFL Playoffs annually, those limits are becoming obvious. In his second season under HC Sean McVay, Goff competed in Super Bowl LIII. He has yet to carry the Detroit Lions to that level.

It makes a great Cinderella story to put Jared Goff as the hero in his NFL tale. But let's tap the brakes on that "he was done dirty by the Rams," subplot. The entire Rams football organization fully supported Jared Goff until it was obvious that he had fallen short of expectations. Jared Goff never refunded the Rams for betting on him and making a mistake in doing so.

He has a chance to press on to a bright future with the Detroit Lions. There's no need to weep or aw-shucks, NFL fans, over being traded away by the Los Angeles Rams. He has a chance to earn more respect shown to him every time he steps onto the football field. He has a chance to lose respect every time he opens his mouth.

As always, thanks for reading.

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