Jared Goff is chasing history, while doing his best to avoid it. That's a little easier when reporters aren't gathered around his locker. Asked Tuesday about the streak that he's on, Goff deadpanned, "What streak?"
Entering Sunday's game against the Seahawks, the Lions quarterback hasn't thrown an interception in his last 359 pass attempts, dating back to Week 9 of last season. That's the third-longest such streak in NFL history. Goff passed Tom Brady (358) last week and is closing in on ... Tom Brady (399) and Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers' record (402) is just 43 passes away.
"It's not on my mind at all," said Goff. "It’s really not."
Maybe so. But Goff's streak is one of the main forces behind the Lions' surge that started in the second half of last season. He has a passer rating of 104.7 over his last 10 games, including last week's season opener when he did just enough to help the Lions to a 21-20 win over the Chiefs. It wasn't Goff's best performance, but it was mistake-free in the box score. That's the difference in a one-point win.
What goes into a streak like this?
"It’s been a lot of things," he said. "Obviously we’ve been playing well, taking care of the ball and then there’s a lot of luck in it. We've had balls batted that hit the ground, those doesn’t always happen. A lot of guys making catches, a lot of the defense not making catches. A few different things, but if I’m taking care of the ball, we usually win games. So I gotta keep doing that.”
This is no small feat. For comparison, Patrick Mahomes has seven picks over his last 10 games. So does Joe Burrow. Rodgers, the record holder, has eight. So does Matthew Stafford. Josh Allen has 11. And Goff has zero. He says his teammates are as interested in his streak as he is.
"We don’t talk about it at all, really," he said. "We talk about winning."
Goff's streak hasn't been fueled by conservative throws. He's driving the ball downfield when he gets the chance, and testing tight windows when he has to. He kept the Lions' go-ahead touchdown drive alive last Thursday with an 18-yard completion on 3rd and 12 to Josh Reynolds, slotting the ball between three defenders. Goff would tell you the play should've been better: he didn't see Amon-Ra St. Brown running free on a blown coverage. The streak has been fueled by smart throws.
"Being careful with the football and not careless, but at the same time, being aggressive when the shots are there and making those plays that we have to make," said Goff. "Just finding that balance. I’ve found a good place in that and want to keep going.”
Goff, 28, has matured as a quarterback in Detroit, especially under offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Over the last few seasons, he says he's learned that "just because the shot’s called, doesn’t mean a shot's taken."
"But also knowing when it’s there and pulling the trigger and making those tight-window throws," he said.
Eventually, Goff will throw another pick. Whether that's this week, next week or sometime thereafter, the streak that he's on speaks for itself. Asked how it feels to be in the company of Brady and Rodgers, Goff said it one more time for everyone to hear: "I haven’t thought about it once."
"Yeah, it’s a cool thing to look back on one day, but if you told me it kept going and we’d lost games, I don’t care. I’m just trying to win games."