When the Lions acquired Jared Goff as part of the Matthew Stafford trade ahead of the 2021 season, the general opinion was that the team would be looking for a new quarterback sooner rather than later.
That opinion was proven incorrect. Goff has played well the last two seasons and the only quarterback the Lions have drafted is Hendon Hooker, who is coming off a torn ACL and is expected to be a redshirt as a rookie.
While it’s clear that Goff has won the respect of the Lions, outside voices have not been as quick to share those sentiments. On Tuesday, Goff said that isn’t something of concern.
“I don’t care,” Goff said, via Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press. “Don’t care. Don’t even know if I do or not. Try to win games for this team. That’s all.”
Goff added that it is “always good to have the little chip on your shoulder that you want to prove people wrong,” so he may not be totally tuning out the outside noise but the approach he’s chosen is working for him and it’s part of the reason why there’s so much optimism around the Lions this season.