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Goff Impressing Coaches with Work Ethic, Showing Early Progress
With the Rams beginning OTAs next week, No. 1 overall pick
Jared Goff
will be on the field squaring off against a defense for the first time in practice. Because players are not in pads, the organized team activities are essentially a period of continued learning. And the coaches who work closely with Los Angeles’ newest quarterback — offensive coordinator Rob Boras and quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke — are looking forward to seeing Goff progress on the field.When the organization made the decision to trade for the first pick, it was clear there was a general consensus one quarterback appeared a cut above the rest. According to Weinke, Goff’s film was simply outstanding.
“The guy is just a natural passer of the football. You can tell he’s a natural athlete,” the QB coach said. “He was probably the smoothest guy that I’ve evaluated in a long time, as it relates to pocket awareness and pocket presence.
“Time after time, you’ve seen him make big plays,” Weinke continued. “And the guy made some ‘wow’ throws that not a lot of college guys have made — or that I’ve ever seen on film. You really put all those variables together, and he was a guy who kind of rose to the top and we felt like would be a good fit here in Los Angeles.”
But it wasn’t just about the throws. The fact that Goff helped bring Cal from an 11-loss team his freshman year to winning the program’s first bowl game since 2008 speaks volumes about his leadership ability.
“Collectively, you look at his body of work and what he did as a young kid going into Cal … not only physically, but mentally what he was able to accomplish, and truly be the leader of that football team,” Weinke said, adding to “go from 1-11 to going to a bowl game and winning is important, as it relates to the quarterback position and leadership ability.”
According to Boras, Goff has shown those qualities even in the short time he’s been a Ram.
“Watching him with the other rookies and just the leadership, and getting those guys out involved — it’s all the things that you’d hope for, and you heard,” Boras said. “But now to see it in person, it’s truly exciting.”
Goff’s strong work ethic has been well documented, but witnessing it in person has nevertheless been noteworthy for Boras and Weinke.
“The thing that’s really impressed me with Jared has just been his commitment to the classroom and his commitment to learn,” Boras said. “He’s been in there early for every meeting — I don’t mean five-minutes early. The meeting is supposed to start at 8:30, he’s trying to roll in and he’s always working.”
“The good thing about Jared is that he’s a cerebral kid,” Weinke said. “He’s very smart. He can absorb the information. In our research and our due diligence on him, we found that out — that this guy can take the information from the classroom and apply it out on the field. And that was important to us.”
Those factors have made the coaches comfortable with giving the rookie QB plenty to learn in the nascent stage of his career.
“We’re throwing a lot at him — probably more than you would throw to most guys,” Boras said. “We’re going to throw a lot at him right now, see what sticks, instead of just spoon feeding it along. Now, obviously, we want him to have success and feel comfortable, but we need to challenge.
“We need to raise our level of expectations, not just for him but for this entire offense. So we’re trying to put as much not only on Jared, but with all of these guys, as possible,” Boras continued. “So what maybe we would’ve taken the mid-OTAs to get to, we’re trying to get to now. And the more you hear anything — repetition is the mother of all learning. So the more that we throw and the more chances they have to hear it, the better it has to stick.”
Going along with that, Goff has shown a proclivity for asking relevant questions whenever he needs clarification. It’s a behavior the coaching staff has encouraged since his arrival.
“I think it’s important that you lay the foundation on Day 1 with a young quarterback — understand that there are no dumb questions,” Weinke said. “Understand that the more questions you ask, the better we’re going to feel. Don’t ever assume that you know the answer.
“And so [Goff’s] done an outstanding job of, throughout the course of meetings, whether it’s with coach Boras or myself, pausing and saying, ‘Wait, I don’t understand that. Explain that to me better,’” Weinke continued. “We’re excited about that. That means he’s not afraid to ask questions. And then when we do teach him something, he is absorbing it and understands it.”
Despite the staff’s ability to put a lot on Goff’s plate, there are ways within the scheme where they’ll look to smooth the rookie’s transition to the NFL — particularly with pass protection. Boras identified the understanding of pass-protection concepts as the biggest hurdle first-year QBs often face.
“The pass concepts don’t vary very much from college to the NFL — or really from one team in the NFL to another. It’s really the protections and knowing what your problems are,” Boras said. “If we can make the run game simple for them, if we can simplify protections — and by simplify, it doesn’t mean max protect necessarily. But just letting him know where his problems are, and if you have a problem, how do you fix it? And then once he gets accustomed to that, he’ll have the opportunity to go be himself and spin the ball like we know he’s capable of doing.”
Plus, the Rams have the reigning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year in Todd Gurley
, whose ability to run the football inherently takes pressure off the quarterback and the passing game.“That’s what coach Fisher told him when he first got here, and when we really first met Jared was, ‘You know who our running back is?’” Boras said. “And that’s what we can’t forget. His best friend is going to be turning around and handing it to Todd. And then whey they stack the box and try to take Todd away, we need to be able to take advantage of it through the air.”
And so as the Rams begin their OTA sessions next week, both Boras and Weinke are highly encouraged by the prospect of Goff learning and growing in his new offensive system.
“There’s bumps along the road, but he’s understanding the process,” Boras said. “And we’re just trying to make sure we’re building the foundation that will allow him to be successful on Sundays in the near future.”
“He’s, really, exactly what you’re looking for,” Weinke said. “Great clay to mold, and we’re excited about what he brings to this football team.”
