It's fair to say Jared Goff isn't a highly respected NFL quarterback. Perhaps subconsciously, I type "Goof" initially every time I try to use his name in a story. There was a draft rumor going around that the Lions would select Malik Willis at No. 2 overall. The 27-year-0ld, former No. 1 overall draft pick is lightly regarded. But while Goff may not be an elite passer, he has done some good things in his career, especially in fantasy leagues.
Perhaps he's been lucky to have good coaching staffs and players around him, or maybe merely staying healthy and showing up to work is a large part of it. Whatever the case, he's been a good fantasy quarterback more often than not, and he's helped produce a lot of quality receivers.
Goff has been a starting quarterback for five full seasons. In four of those, he's finished 6th, 11th, 13th and 16th at the position in typical fantasy scoring; a regular starter in 12-team leagues three times. And while he hasn't brought anyone to the heights that Matthew Stafford just did with Cooper Kupp, he did throw to a lot of top receivers in fantasy leagues.
In those five seasons, five top-15 (PPR) wideouts and a pair of top-15 tight ends have caught passes from Goff. Expanding further, we get nine top 35 wide receivers and five top-25 tight ends. Working with Goff has gone pretty well for Rams and now Lions pass catchers the last few years.
Table shows the top-performing receivers (wideouts and tight ends) on Goff teams the last five seasons, sorted by PPR rank.
| TOP JARED GOFF PASS CATCHERS, 2017-2021 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Pos | Tgt | Rec | Yds | TD | Rk |
| 2019 | Cooper Kupp | WR | 134 | 94 | 1161 | 10 | 5 |
| 2019 | Tyler Higbee | TE | 89 | 69 | 734 | 3 | 8 |
| 2018 | Robert Woods | WR | 130 | 86 | 1219 | 6 | 11 |
| 2018 | Brandin Cooks | WR | 117 | 80 | 1204 | 5 | 13 |
| 2020 | Robert Woods | WR | 129 | 90 | 936 | 6 | 14 |
| 2019 | Robert Woods | WR | 139 | 90 | 1134 | 2 | 14 |
| 2021 | T.J. Hockenson | TE | 84 | 61 | 583 | 4 | 15 |
| 2020 | Tyler Higbee | TE | 60 | 44 | 521 | 5 | 18 |
| 2021 | Amon-Ra St. Brown | WR | 119 | 90 | 912 | 5 | 22 |
| 2018 | Gerald Everett | TE | 50 | 33 | 320 | 3 | 22 |
| 2020 | Gerald Everett | TE | 62 | 41 | 417 | 1 | 24 |
| 2017 | Cooper Kupp | WR | 94 | 62 | 869 | 5 | 25 |
| 2020 | Cooper Kupp | WR | 124 | 92 | 974 | 3 | 26 |
| 2019 | Gerald Everett | TE | 60 | 37 | 408 | 2 | 26 |
| 2017 | Robert Woods | WR | 85 | 56 | 781 | 5 | 33 |
| 2017 | Sammy Watkins | WR | 70 | 39 | 593 | 8 | 41 |
Eventually -- maybe a year from now -- the Lions might try to land a franchise quarterback in the draft. But for 2022, he looks very safe as a 17-game starter. The only other quarterbacks on the roster are Tim Boyle and David Blough. I don't imagine I'll be drafting Goff as any more than a modest No. 2; not enough upside. But there are worse backup quarterbacks in fantasy leagues, and worse guys to have throwing to your top pass catchers. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, DJ Chark, T.J. Hockenson; there are players who interest me this season.
--Andy Richardson