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By Tim Godfrey
Thursday at 8:43 PM
http://profootballspot.com/nfl/arti...cord-with-quarterbacks-not-goffs-record-r173/
The record as a starter can be most useless stat used to either praise or crucify a quarterback.
A team can have a terrible defense that gets blown out by the likes of Washington State, Oregon State, and Colorado, but the quarterback is the one who suffers. The following season, when everyone is pushing out their season/team previews and analyzing for the sake of analyzing, the starting quarterback record is brought up as though it means something.
The starting record should be looked at as no more than a complement to the rest of the state line and game tape, not a lynchpin of the quarterback’s scouting report.
Goff And The Not So Golden Bears
Following a 3-9 season in 2012, the Athletic Director fired Jeff Tedford, who had been the Cal head coach for a decade. Tedford has the most victories as a head coach and bowl wins, but the graduation rate of players was 48 percent under his watch, worst in the Pac 12. With Tedford out the door, two men came in to try and pull the declining football program up. But it wouldn’t be without a lot of struggle.
Sonny Dukes became the head coach in 2013 and with him, Dukes brought Tony Franklin to be his offensive coordinator. Dukes and Franklin came from Louisiana Tech, where they brought the Bulldogs program back from the basement of the then-WAC conference.
Their first season together at Cal was a disaster. The Golden Bears finished 1-11 with their only victory coming against Portland State, a non-FBS school.
However, from an offensive perspective, the year went quite nicely. Cal named freshman quarterback Jared Goff as their starter. Under Franklin’s “Bear Raid” offense, the Bears had the No. 2 scoring offense in the Pac 12 and were 11th in the country.
Despite the losses, Goff did a great job as a quarterback, let alone a freshman.
He broke the record for most passing yards thrown during the regular season (3,508), finished with a 60 percent completion rate, and 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Every season following, Goff would only increase his production despite the terrible and eventually average team that surrounded him.
What could potentially hinder Goff
There is no question about the Rams’ decision to take Goff at No. 1. He was the most qualified quarterback in the draft and did a lot with a little, which is exactly what this team needs at quarterback.
The one thing that could kill Goff’s success and the team’s success, however, is the team itself.
The Golden Bears didn’t achieve a winning record until the third year of the Dukes-Franklin regime, mostly due to their poor defense. In fact, it was all because of their poor defense. But Goff and the offense continued to improve and increase their production thanks to Franklin, who is an offensive mastermind.
Franklin has a history of helping bad college teams find their offensive swagger and get them scoring again. In 2007, eight days before their bowl game against Clemson, Auburn hired Franklin as their offensive coordinator. Franklin installed a spread offense and the Tigers defeated Clemson in the Chic-Fil-A Bowl that year.
At Middle Tennessee and Louisiana Tech, Franklin helped both programs develop dynamic offenses that would eventually help the team earn winning records and bowl games.
Franklin is a great offensive mind and that’s something the Rams are without.
The last great offensive mind the Rams had was Mike Martz. Since then, the Rams have been middle-of-the-pack on their best day, and bottom of the basement on any given Sunday.
Rob Boras was named permanent offensive coordinator after he finished the rest of the year filling in for Frank Cignetti, who was fired before finishing his first season.
The Rams offense picked up the pace in the final four games, raising their points-per-game average to more than 20 and finishing the four-game stretch with a 3-1 record. Their loss was the season finale against the San Francisco 49ers, who were worse than the Rams. Still, Los Angeles (then the St. Louis Rams) couldn’t move the ball at all, finishing the game only scoring 16 points.
Boras has given no indication that his offense will be any different in 2016. He may have kept the Cignetti offense, which was a continuation of Brian Schottenheimer’s offense, perhaps so the team wouldn’t have to struggle with learning a new offense towards the end of the year.
With their move to Los Angeles, and the thirst for a winning season and a playoff run having never been higher, the Rams have a lot riding on the success of their new franchise quarterback. Their offense needs to revolve around him. Their offense needs to suit Goff. Most importantly, they need to help Goff grow and improve, the same way he did at Cal.
Otherwise, the Rams will be picking another quarterback at No. 1 in five years.
Tim Godfrey is a beat writer for the Los Angeles Rams and a Featured Analyst for Pro Football Spot.
Thursday at 8:43 PM
http://profootballspot.com/nfl/arti...cord-with-quarterbacks-not-goffs-record-r173/
The record as a starter can be most useless stat used to either praise or crucify a quarterback.
A team can have a terrible defense that gets blown out by the likes of Washington State, Oregon State, and Colorado, but the quarterback is the one who suffers. The following season, when everyone is pushing out their season/team previews and analyzing for the sake of analyzing, the starting quarterback record is brought up as though it means something.
The starting record should be looked at as no more than a complement to the rest of the state line and game tape, not a lynchpin of the quarterback’s scouting report.
Goff And The Not So Golden Bears
Following a 3-9 season in 2012, the Athletic Director fired Jeff Tedford, who had been the Cal head coach for a decade. Tedford has the most victories as a head coach and bowl wins, but the graduation rate of players was 48 percent under his watch, worst in the Pac 12. With Tedford out the door, two men came in to try and pull the declining football program up. But it wouldn’t be without a lot of struggle.
Sonny Dukes became the head coach in 2013 and with him, Dukes brought Tony Franklin to be his offensive coordinator. Dukes and Franklin came from Louisiana Tech, where they brought the Bulldogs program back from the basement of the then-WAC conference.
Their first season together at Cal was a disaster. The Golden Bears finished 1-11 with their only victory coming against Portland State, a non-FBS school.
However, from an offensive perspective, the year went quite nicely. Cal named freshman quarterback Jared Goff as their starter. Under Franklin’s “Bear Raid” offense, the Bears had the No. 2 scoring offense in the Pac 12 and were 11th in the country.
Despite the losses, Goff did a great job as a quarterback, let alone a freshman.
He broke the record for most passing yards thrown during the regular season (3,508), finished with a 60 percent completion rate, and 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Every season following, Goff would only increase his production despite the terrible and eventually average team that surrounded him.
What could potentially hinder Goff
There is no question about the Rams’ decision to take Goff at No. 1. He was the most qualified quarterback in the draft and did a lot with a little, which is exactly what this team needs at quarterback.
The one thing that could kill Goff’s success and the team’s success, however, is the team itself.
The Golden Bears didn’t achieve a winning record until the third year of the Dukes-Franklin regime, mostly due to their poor defense. In fact, it was all because of their poor defense. But Goff and the offense continued to improve and increase their production thanks to Franklin, who is an offensive mastermind.
Franklin has a history of helping bad college teams find their offensive swagger and get them scoring again. In 2007, eight days before their bowl game against Clemson, Auburn hired Franklin as their offensive coordinator. Franklin installed a spread offense and the Tigers defeated Clemson in the Chic-Fil-A Bowl that year.
At Middle Tennessee and Louisiana Tech, Franklin helped both programs develop dynamic offenses that would eventually help the team earn winning records and bowl games.
Franklin is a great offensive mind and that’s something the Rams are without.
The last great offensive mind the Rams had was Mike Martz. Since then, the Rams have been middle-of-the-pack on their best day, and bottom of the basement on any given Sunday.
Rob Boras was named permanent offensive coordinator after he finished the rest of the year filling in for Frank Cignetti, who was fired before finishing his first season.
The Rams offense picked up the pace in the final four games, raising their points-per-game average to more than 20 and finishing the four-game stretch with a 3-1 record. Their loss was the season finale against the San Francisco 49ers, who were worse than the Rams. Still, Los Angeles (then the St. Louis Rams) couldn’t move the ball at all, finishing the game only scoring 16 points.
Boras has given no indication that his offense will be any different in 2016. He may have kept the Cignetti offense, which was a continuation of Brian Schottenheimer’s offense, perhaps so the team wouldn’t have to struggle with learning a new offense towards the end of the year.
With their move to Los Angeles, and the thirst for a winning season and a playoff run having never been higher, the Rams have a lot riding on the success of their new franchise quarterback. Their offense needs to revolve around him. Their offense needs to suit Goff. Most importantly, they need to help Goff grow and improve, the same way he did at Cal.
Otherwise, the Rams will be picking another quarterback at No. 1 in five years.
Tim Godfrey is a beat writer for the Los Angeles Rams and a Featured Analyst for Pro Football Spot.
