When the Los Angeles Rams made Cal quarterback Jared Goff the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, the franchise look like they have hit a turning point in franchise history. This was a big splash bringing in Goff as the top guy in the draft in a lot of different ways.
First, Rams head coach Jeff Fisher and general manger Les Snead understood they had to make a powerful statement after giving up a slew of draft picks to nab Goff. To Fisher and Snead, it was worth getting Goff for. He is the present and the future for the Rams.
When the Los Angeles Rams made Cal quarterback Jared Goff the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, the franchise look like they have hit a turning point in franchise history. This was a big splash bringing in Goff as the top guy in the draft in a lot of different ways.
First, Rams head coach Jeff Fisher and general manger Les Snead understood they had to make a powerful statement after giving up a slew of draft picks to nab Goff. To Fisher and Snead, it was worth getting Goff for. He is the present and the future for the Rams.
One could argue that may have been the thinking when the Rams went out and selected Sam Bradford with the top pick in the 2010 draft. The difference is that Goff is a different kind of quarterback than Bradford. He brings a different set of skills to the table. For one thing, Goff is mobile enough to get out harm’s way in and out of the pocket.
He has a rocket release. He can also get his team into the endzone. He did that pretty well last season, throwing for 43 touchdowns against 13 interceptions. The year before, Goff completed 35 touchdowns against seven picks. For his college career, Goff completed 62 percent of his passes.
Of course, there are going to be questions surrounding his 14-23 record as a starter at Cal. But this is not Cal. Goff is going to have a much better supporting cast around him with the Rams. The Rams defense is one of the best in the league. Goff will then have his share of offensive weapons, including last year’s Rookie of the Year in running back Todd Gurley, to distribute the ball to, and that should not be a problem.
The Rams needed a pro-ready signal-caller, and they have one in Goff. Now they need to win. Speaking at a Los Angeles press conference last week after picking his prized rookie quarterback, Fisher sounded super excited. The selection came down to two quarterbacks: Goff and Carson Wentz, the North Dakota State star. Apparently, the upside of Goff won over the Rams.
“We have been waiting for this moment for some time now since the trade,” Fisher said. “We are excited to have you all here and are really excited to talk about [Rams first-round pick QB] Jared [Goff]. A lot of work has gone into this decision and your questions are probably, ‘How long have you known?’ And we have probably known for a little while. As you know we have had both Jared and Carson [Wentz] and I spent a lot of time with both of them. We came away after they both left knowing that both would be extraordinary quarterbacks in this league and just felt really good about being in the position to be where we got to choose one of them.
“We spent a lot of time and we feel like Jared is our guy. So this is, I don’t want to say this historic, maybe monumental, but this is a big deal for this franchise to be in a position to where we can have our pick of a franchise quarterback and look forward to years to come with a player that is not only talented, but he is a great person. He is a competitor, he’s a leader, he does all those things. We are going to wish Carson the best and we are going to look forward to our future here with Jared eventually becoming our starting quarterback.”
To be in Los Angeles or rather the land of Hollywood, you have to have some kind of cache to win over the fans. When the Rams left for St. Louis after the 1994 season, it was heartbreaking for a lot of their loyal Southern California fans. Now that the Rams will be playing again in the SoCal market, the team needed to find a way to hit a home run.
They may have hit a grand slam with Goff. The young man has the Hollywood looks. He’s calm and doesn’t appear to shrink in the moment of being that guy or the face of the franchise.
“It’s a huge dream come true for me and something you can’t really put into words,” Goff said. “It is awesome. The phone call last night is something I will remember forever. The whole experience is very surreal, but I know it comes with a lot of responsibility. I am ready for that and very excited for it.”
