Jared Goff: On the clock with a career in the balance
The good feelz surrounding the Los Angeles Rams will continue, and continue they should. As this team is now free of the long winter via the Jeff Fisher era, a new era is now upon them. With Sean McVay a lot is possible, but more importantly, it’s now time for Jared Goff to make a move, and not the lateral kind.
The shine of the top overall pick is now gone. Replaced by a seven game losing skid, and the requisite bottom of the league rankings, Jared Goff is lucky enough to get a “do-over.”
No one needs it more. However, the ‘one-off’ disaster that was his rookie season is in the books. Moving forward, it’s about production and wins, and something maybe even more elusive; leadership.
With Fisher and Rob Boras, it was easy to see Jared Goff as the round peg being forced into the square hole that was the Rams offense. Goff didn’t just look bad, but absent of a quarterback identity. The Fisher led Rams had stripped him of whatever they saw of Goff on tape. In their effort to break him and re-make him, they only managed the breaking part. That’s a mistake that needs to be fixed.
In Washington, with a quarterback taken in the third round, McVay managed to dig deep and get a lot from Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins had the benefit of one extra year of college, and one year to watch RGIII take the league by storm. As he assumed the starter’s role, it was also noticeable the growth being something tangible and thus translated into wins.
Fans in L.A. will look for the same, and frankly should.
AROUND COVER32
Playoff Recap: The postseason finally gets going
Draft:: Five players to watch from the East/West Shrine Game
Awards:: cover32’s end-of-season awards
D.C. To L.A.: Observations and opinions from those who watched McVay
Toxic Rams: McVay will be tasked with changing a bad locker room culture in L.A.
Rams Turn To McVay: Did the Rams finally get one right?
And so should Jared Goff.
Under Fisher and Boras, the Rams were slow and prodding. They were unimaginative and predictable. It was like watching quicksand swallow Goff and the offense for seven games. How many times was a 3rd and 8 negotiated away with a play that only yielded 4 to 6 yards and a punt.
Goff now has the benefit of an entire offseason to figure it out. He has an offseason to grow and mature from a rookie lost in the woods to a leader on and off the field. McVay doesn’t need to just rebuild an offense, but a quarterback who’s yet to return any of the investment made. Add to that the equity the team needs to yield from the draft picks traded away, and the clock on Goff begins to tick even louder.
For Jared, it’s a unique opportunity. But it’s also one he may not get again. NFL career’s can be unkind and offer no guarantees for being long and illustrious when you’re the #1 pick overall.
The road is littered with “should’ve been” at the quarterback position, and the jury will remain out on Goff until he notched not just A win, but several. Goff has to win, and while the Rams may enjoy something of a second honeymoon next season given the significance of the changes made in the last week, the organization is on a significantly shorter leash.
So is Jared Goff for that matter.
Make that “do-over” a good one Jared. You’re not likely to get another.
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