Detroit Lions fans have not been happy with the play of Jared Goff–to the point they’d give Love a chance?
The Detroit Lions are the epitome of bad. Anything another NFL team can do wrong, the Lions can do worse. A 2021 season that was expected to be difficult is simply a disaster.
Deciding what the Lions’ biggest problem is isn’t easy. The offensive line, which was expected to be a strength, has been marred by injuries (though left tackle Taylor Decker is on his way back). The defensive line hasn’t lived up to its billing, the secondary is young and has been porous, the receivers have been pedestrian at best and the quarterback play has been suspect.
With all the problems the Lions have had, Jared Goff has been under the most scrutiny. It’s fairly easy to see when a passer looks good or bad, and Goff has been pretty bad. However, with the patchwork wide receiver corps and inconsistent pass protection, Goff’s poor play has contributing factors beyond his realm.
Is Love, or something like it, the answer for the Lions?
That being said, sometimes a quarterback just isn’t good. Last Sunday the explosive Green Bay Packers offense went dormant with Jordan Love at the helm instead of Aaron Rodgers. A Packer fan friend said to me, “it was like watching the Lions offense.” Ouch.
That sentiment was hard to argue with. Along with mistakes rooted in his inexperience, Love made a few plays with his feet and even threw the ball down the field a few times. Goff has shown no willingness or ability to do either of those things. In the fourth quarter last Sunday, Love found a bit of a comfort zone and looked OK.
Love wasn’t good enough to get the win for the Packers against the Chiefs. But what he did show might have gotten Lions’ fans attention, on the faint chance the Packers would make a complete pivot and consider trading Rodgers’ anointed heir apparent.
Most Lions fans are trying to find a quarterback who could be a hidden gem in the 2022 draft class to be Goff’s heir apparent. There is no Andrew Luck, Peyton Manning or even Trevor Lawrence in this draft class. If Love was coming out for next April’s draft, there’s a chance he’d be the top-rated quarterback.
There may be a hidden gem quarterback to be found among the incoming class of signal callers. If general manager Brad Holmes finds one, then all of Detroit will celebrate. But what Love represents is something the Lions just don’t have at quarterback right now–potential with the exciting side of unknown.