The careers of Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford have been linked ever since that blockbuster 2021 trade flipped the script for both franchises. And now, nearly five seasons later, the ripple effects are still being felt - and the numbers are stacking up in ways that tell a deeper story about two quarterbacks who’ve each found new life in their second acts.
In Sunday’s 41-34 shootout between the Rams and Lions, Stafford not only led his team to a win over his former squad - he also leapfrogged Goff on the Rams’ all-time passing yards list. Stafford came into the game just 117 yards behind Goff and finished with 368, pushing his Rams total to 18,422 yards. The Rams didn’t waste time celebrating the milestone, posting a graphic on social media that summed it up: “Nine just keeps climbing.”
And climb he has.
Stafford has now passed Goff in just about every major passing category as a Ram. Earlier this season, he overtook Goff in touchdown passes (132 to 107), and last week, he passed Goff in games played for the franchise. Goff had 69 starts in Los Angeles; Stafford has already surpassed that and shows no signs of slowing down.
At this point, Stafford sits third all-time in Rams history for touchdown passes and fourth in passing yards. The next targets?
Jim Everett and Roman Gabriel. Stafford is now 5,336 yards shy of Everett’s franchise record and trails Gabriel by 22 touchdowns.
He’s also closing in on Everett’s regular-season win total - just two victories away from second all-time. Gabriel still leads that category with 74 wins, while Goff finished his Rams tenure with 42.
But while Stafford continues to etch his name into Rams lore, Goff is carving out a legacy of his own in Detroit - one that’s quietly becoming the most productive stretch of any Lions quarterback in the Super Bowl era.
After a rocky start in his first year with the Lions, Goff has settled into a rhythm that’s been nothing short of elite. He’s now played the same number of seasons in Detroit as he did in L.A., but with 10 more games under his belt in Honolulu Blue. And despite Sunday’s loss, Goff was sharp against his old team - throwing for 338 yards, three touchdowns, and no turnovers.
Statistically, Goff is having a career year. He ranks top five in the league in passing yards (3,672 - 3rd), touchdown passes (29 - 2nd), completion percentage (69.3% - 4th), and passer rating (110.4 - 2nd), all while keeping his interception total to just five. He’s trailing Stafford in most of those areas, but he’s matching him in ball security and actually leads in completion percentage.
And when you zoom out and compare his Lions production to his Rams days, the growth is undeniable. Goff has already surpassed his Rams totals in wins (47 to 42), passing yards (20,559 to 18,171), and touchdown passes (144 to 107).
His completion percentage is nearly five points higher in Detroit (68.1% vs. 63.4%), and his passer rating is up over 10 points (101.9 vs.
91.5).
Still, Stafford’s Lions legacy looms large.
He remains the franchise leader in starts (165), wins (74), passing yards (45,109), and touchdowns (282). Goff, with 79 starts, is 27 wins behind, and the yardage and touchdown gaps are significant - he’d need another five seasons at his current pace just to catch Stafford in both categories.
The good news for Lions fans? That timeline is still very much in play.
Goff has three years left on his current deal, though the team has a potential out after two. If he plays out the full contract, he’ll be 34 - still prime years in today’s NFL, where we’re seeing quarterbacks like Philip Rivers play into their 40s and Stafford turning in an MVP-caliber campaign at 37.
And if Goff keeps performing like this, there’s every reason to believe Detroit will want him around longer. As GM Brad Holmes put it not long ago: “It’s a lot easier to get worse at QB than to get better at QB.”
That’s the reality facing the Lions. Goff may not be the prototype for today’s mobile quarterback era, but few passers in the league are throwing it better right now. And while the league trends toward dual-threat stars, Goff is proving that elite processing, accuracy, and decision-making can still win at a high level.
But the clock is ticking - not just on Goff’s contract, but on Detroit’s Super Bowl window. If the Lions are going to make a serious run, it’s likely to be with Goff at the helm. And if he does stick around long enough to chase down Stafford’s franchise records, that would almost certainly mean he was the guy who finally took Detroit where Stafford couldn’t.
If that happens, the debate over the greatest quarterback in Lions history might not be a debate at all.