Brad Holmes sees Jared Goff taking his leadership to a new level in Detroit
2 min read
Jared Goff is doing things Brad Holmes never saw in LA.
It’s no secret that Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff has a newfound sense of belonging after being traded from the Los Angeles Rams earlier this offseason. A few times already, he’s noted how his new situation “is where I’m supposed to be” or that the coaching staff has empowered him.
But Goff, himself, is also making a positive impression on the Lions—even to the ones who are already familiar with him. Lions general manager Brad Holmes, who had a big part in the Rams drafting him back in 2017, told the Detroit Free Press that he sees a sense of leadership that he never noticed in Los Angeles.
“I’ve seen things from him that I had not seen from him in L.A., just from a personality standpoint, from a leadership standpoint,” Holmes said. “And everybody leads in their own ways.”
Specifically, Holmes noted that when the trade first went down, Goff sought out the phone numbers for every single offensive player on the roster. Not long after, he had already held several off-campus workouts with teammates, seeking to gain chemistry with them both on and off the field.
“He aggressively was like, ‘I need to call this guy, call this guy. I need to get all these guys’ (numbers),’” Holmes recalled. “When we brought him up for his first physical after (the trade), that eagerness and that aggressiveness to really even grab that moment was like, ‘Wow, even I hadn’t seen that.’”
Holmes did admit that as the director of college scouting in Los Angeles, he didn’t have as intimate a relationship with Goff as he does now as the GM in Detroit, and that could have something to do with these newfound leadership qualities. But the more he speaks about Goff, the clearer it is Holmes believes he can return to his high level of 2017 and 2018 play, which resulted in two Pro Bowl seasons and a Super Bowl appearance.
“I never viewed (Goff) as a bridge option,” Holmes told DetroitLions.com recently. “He’s been a winning quarterback. His resume speaks for itself. Since he’s been a full-time starter he’s not been to the playoffs (just) one time.”
