This isn't necessarily about the way things ended between Jared Goff and the Rams. But the ways things have started between Goff and the Lions has the quarterback excited for the next chapter of his career.
Goff said Tuesday at the start of mandatory minicamp that Dan Campbell and offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn have lent him plenty of say in the design and installation of Detroit's new offense.
"Dan and A-Lynn have really empowered me to kind of, what do I want, what do I like, how do I want to see it, how do we want to do things? They’re constantly bouncing things off me and I’m constantly bouncing things off them. I think that’s been a healthy relationship and something that’s been fun for me to experience, being a part of guys that are really wanting to hear from me and hear what I like," Goff said.
Once upon a time, Goff was saying similar things about his relationship with Sean McVay. But the two-time Pro Bowler who helped the Rams reach the Super Bowl in the 2018 season faltered the past two seasons and was shipped out of town by a coach who no longer trusted him. Things change fast in the NFL.
But Goff, 26, was quick to note his excitement about his new coaching staff isn't a comment on his old one.
"I’m not saying that in any regard to previous experience, I’m not saying it like that," Goff said. "I’m just saying it’s been great. I’ve had experiences where it has been like that and where it hasn’t throughout my career, and I think here so far it’s been a positive side of that. They want to know what I like, they want to hear from me and they’re constantly talking to me and informing me and we’re working together to build this thing the right way."
Related
The Lions are expected to install an offense that takes advantage of Goff's talent as a play-action passer. That begins with the run. Goff acknowledged the system belongs to the coaches, but said they've come to him on lots of "little details" to ask, "Do you want it like this or like this?"
"Or furthermore, I go to A-Lynn or Dan and tell them I feel a certain way about something and they either agree with me or they don’t," Goff said. "But it’s a good conversation and usually pretty collaborative."
Campbell, who was gushing last week about Goff's performance at OTA's, said Tuesday he's talked with Goff lots about "things he did at the Rams and things he feels comfortable with." He also said he's made a point to join some of the quarterbacks meetings just to "be down there with him as we talk through some of these looks."
"I want him to have flexibility," Campbell said. "I do. I want him to feel comfortable enough to say what’s on his mind, like, ‘Why are we not converting these?’ And either I’ll tell you, ‘This is why we’re not,’ or A-Lynn will tell you, ‘This is why we’re not.' Or, ‘You know what, that’s a good idea. Let’s do it.’ I want him to have open dialogue with us. I want him to have feedback."
Related
It's not just about empowering Goff, said Campbell. It's about making the entire offense feel comfortable around him.
"If he feels like there's something he can do and we feel good about putting it in his hands, that’s what we want to do," Campbell said. "Because I think if you do that and you feel like he can handle it, he really does gain a lot more ownership of it and the guys around him will feel that. That’s what we want.
"I don’t want to just put him in a box and say, ‘No, no, no. This is who you are. You have to stay in this confinement and you cannot deviate out of this box whatsoever.' I want him to be able to come out of that box at times. If you’ve got things that you feel like you can do and we can handle as a team, then we’ll put on him whatever we feel like we can put on him because I think that will help him become better as our field general.”
Campbell said he learned this approach during his tenure as assistant head coach of the Saints, watching Sean Payton interact with Drew Brees.
"Just seeing the flexibility that we had and the dialogue that goes back and forth on those things. Look, you can’t just turn everything over to (the quarterback) because you don’t want to bog him down. You don’t want to put so much in his head that he plays slow. That’s what we don’t want. But at the same time, man, to put some tools in his toolbox that he can go to for the perfect look, I think that only makes sense," said Campbell.
Goff didn't always sound like a happy quarterback toward the end of his tenure with the Rams. He certainly sounds like one in Detroit.
"Again, I don’t want this to turn into anything that happened in my past," he said. "But for this to start off on that foot, I think the best thing I can say is it’s been fun. I've had a lot of fun having that ownership and being able to really use my strengths and my knowledge and what I know, and at the same time continue to learn from these guys."