ALLEN PARK — It’s not all about the stats, but Lions quarterback Jared Goff has put up huge numbers in the last 16 games. In that stretch the Lions are 13-3.
So far this season, they are 5-1, in first place in the NFC North and prepping for another tough road game at Baltimore on Sunday.
Goff, the NFC offensive player of the week for the win at the Bucs, is easing into the NFL MVP discussion.
Here’s why:
In the last 16 games, Goff has thrown 37 touchdowns against just four interceptions, completing 65.46 percent of his passes for 4,152 yards. The team went 13-3 in that stretch.
This season in six games (5-1), he’s thrown 11 touchdowns, three interceptions completing 69.5 percent of his passes for 1,618 yards.
“I don’t know what MVP is or isn’t these days but I know this, he’s playing at a very high level, he’s making the throws that are there and seeing the field. He’s exactly what we need and he’s doing exactly what we’re asking him to do,’’ Lions coach Dan Campbell said on Wednesday. “I’ve said this before. He is an evolving quarterback, he’s developing, he’s been developing and he keeps getting a little bit better. ‘’
Tanner Engstrand, the Lions’ passing game coordinator, is more specific on Goff’s growth and sees him playing at a “very fast” level mentally.
“He’s seeing the defense pre-snap, he’s having an idea of what needs to happen, what he’s expecting. I think there’s a lot of diagnosis that’s going on pre-snap that’s putting him in the position to have that success post-snap,’’ Engstrand said. “And he’s throwing the heck out of the ball. The accuracy right now is really really good and the decision making process is at a high level.’’”
It helps that Goff, the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2016, had the same offensive coordinator Ben Johnson for two years and has been with Campbell for three.
“It’s a lot of hard work, obviously. But typically, when the team’s playing well, it makes my job a hell of a lot easier and defense is giving us short fields, O-line’s protecting really well and I’ve got receivers downfield making plays,’’ Goff said Wednesday. “So, all that comes together, and I do my part and it makes it a lot easier for me.”
Campbell said it’s a credit to Goff and the coaches that he’s growing and playing so well in his seventh season as a starter.
“He’s in a good way, our line is protecting the heck out of him and you give him just a minute, he can see it, he can throw it and our receivers make the play,’’ the coach said.
NOTES: Campbell said the team has been through a meat grinder in recent weeks so instead of a typical practice on Wednesday, they had a walk-through and put emphasis on the mental part of the game. … Due to no practice, the injury report was estimated. RB Craig Reynolds (hamstring/toe), who carried the load Sunday, would not have practiced. With RB David Montgomery (ribs) out for Sunday, they will be thin at running back. However RB Jahmyr Gibbs (hamstring) and DB Brian Branch (ankle) — neither one played Sunday — were listed as limited participants. Campbell said on Monday both were trending in the right direction.
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