Two weeks after the Lions locked up Penei Sewell and Amon-Ra St. Brown to long-term deals, the focus in Detroit has shifted to the sport's most important position: quarterback.
Jared Goff has reclaimed his career with the Lions, morphing from a disappointing former No. 1 overall pick in Los Angeles to a proven commodity under center in Detroit. Soon, he should be paid like one. It's just going to require a little bit of patience.
"He's earned an extension," Lions general manager Brad Holmes said Thursday on 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit. "It's important, it's a high priority for us. Both sides are working really, really hard. These things just take time."
Goff has gone on record on multiple recent occasions to express gratitude for the January 2021 trade that sent him from Los Angeles to Detroit and gave him a fresh start, and said in April he would "love to be" in Detroit "for a long time." Goff has plenty of reason to harbor such desires considering he earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2022 and led the Lions to their first division title in 30 years in 2023 while playing under the direction of offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who chose to return to the Lions in 2024 instead of pursuing head coaching opportunities elsewhere.
Both sides appear to be in sync. Perhaps soon they'll also be in agreement, because if ever there was a time to strike a deal, it is this summer.
Typically, when a team and player are similarly dedicated to extending their partnership, they end up working out a deal. Ideally, it happens before training camp begins in late July, but the Lions could also let Goff play 2024 out with the security of the franchise tag in their back pocket entering 2025.
It doesn't sound, though, as if Holmes needs Goff to prove anything more to him. It's just a matter of working out the numbers.
"In a perfect world, we would've had all three of them done. Bang, bang, bang," Holmes said of extensions for Sewell, St. Brown and Goff. "But these things just kind of take a while, especially with the quarterback market, but I do have faith that it's gonna get done."
Detroit has clearly entered 2024 with one unified mindset: Add reinforcements and run it back. Goff is an integral part of that goal with the Lions, who value him tremendously. It might take a couple of more months, but Detroit fans should rest easily knowing a divide does not exist between quarterback and organization.
