The Los Angeles Rams see Jared Goff as their quarterback “for a long time.” For that, they’ll have to pay.
It has been an eventful offseason for quarterback contracts. Earlier this year, Russell Wilson agreed to a $140 million dollar contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks. Last week, Carson Wentz signed a massive four-year extension with the Philadelphia Eagles for $128 million, with $107 million guaranteed.
Jared Goff is one of the big names waiting in the wings to see what his next payday will be.
“It’s not for me to worry about,” Goff said Tuesday via the Associated Press. “It’s for the team and my agent to work on, and keep doing what I’ve been doing on the field, and hopefully it takes care of itself.”
Goff admitted that the contract had weighed on his mind, but he’s more focused on improving his on-the-field performance.
“You definitely think about it,” Goff said. “But at the same time, I know that none of that is even possible without playing on the field, and being available on the field. I’ll just continue to do what I’ve been doing the last few years, and hopefully it will take care of itself.”
Goff will be attempting to earn his third NFC West title this year with the L.A. Rams. He has two years left under his rookie contract, and the team could use the franchise tag on him after that, so in theory they could hold onto Goff for four more years without giving him a massive payday.
But that would be a mistake. If the Rams want to hold onto Goff, they need to make sure they pay him. In the era of massive quarterback contracts, Goff knows his worth. He hasn’t missed a game due to injury since he was drafted No.1 overall in 2016. He finished the season averaging 8.4 yards per pass, behind only Phillip Rivers and Patrick Mahomes amongst postseason quarterbacks. He threw for over 4,600 yards during the regular season. He led the Rams to their first Super Bowl since 2000 in just his third year with the team.
There have been some rumors that Head Coach Sean McVay might not be committed to Goff after an underwhelming appearance in the Super Bowl. But McVay quickly shot down those rumors.
“Jared Goff, as long as I’m fortunate enough to be in this role, hopefully this guy is stuck with me for a long time. He’s an outstanding leader. People make a big deal about the system, [but] he’s the reason why [it works]. Our players are the reason why the system is what it is, because [Goff] can do so many different things … he’s got true ownership, great ability to communicate with teammates, and with him leading the way, we feel really good.”
McVay has made his position clear. But will the organization give Goff what he needs? If they want to keep him around, they’ll have to.