Turnover Titans: Goff vs. Packers’ Defense
GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers are on the precipice of a spot in the NFL playoffs thanks in large part to a four-game winning streak in which they forced 12 turnovers.
“Yeah, they’re good. They’re good,” Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. “We’re pretty good at taking care of it.”
Turnovers are the key to victory most weeks and it will be no different for their Sunday night showdown at Lambeau Field.
Detroit has turned over the football a league-low 15 times this season. The numbers are as black and white as can be. In the Lions’ eight wins, they have one turnover – Jaire Alexander’s interception at Ford Field. In their eight losses, they have 14 turnovers.
Why have the Lions rebounded from a 1-6 start? Because Goff’s last interception was the one he threw to Alexander. His streak of 261 consecutive passes without an interception is longer than the next two quarterbacks combined. The last eight games, Goff has thrown 15 touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Packers defensive coordinator Joe Barry knows Goff well. Barry was linebackers coach for the Rams team that Goff led to the Super Bowl in 2018.
“I have a ton of respect and we’re friends. We’re buddies,” Barry said on Thursday. “We had four great years together in L.A. and I’ve seen Jared play at an elite, elite level, and he’s playing very good right now.
“You can see that a quarterback’s playing well when you have statistics like that. He’s got a great group around him, he’s got a lot of skill, arguably one of the best offensive lines, if not the best offensive line in football. I got a ton of respect for Jared. Jared’s a really, really, really great quarterback, so I’m not surprised that he’s playing this well.”
In Week 9, the Lions beat the Packers 15-9 at Ford Field. Goff had a miserable game, going 14-of-26 passing for 137 yards. His 53.8 percent completion rate and 5.27 yards per attempts were his worst marks of the season, though he did throw two touchdowns.
The teams are different. In Round 1, two of Green Bay’s defensive starters, outside linebacker Rashan Gary and cornerback Eric Stokes, suffered season-ending injuries. Detroit’s offense was without two of its game-breaking, veteran D.J. Chark and rookie first-round pick Jameson Williams.
Green Bay’s defense is catching fire at just the right time. During the last four games, Green Bay is third in opponent passer rating, first in interceptions and ninth in points allowed. Alexander is tied for fifth with five interceptions. Rasul Douglas has four.
“They pretty much have a good player at every position,” Goff told reporters on Wednesday. “And that makes it hard. Like, who do you attack? They’ve got a good player everywhere, and they make everything look the same, and they’re very well-coached, and they do everything right. They’re a good defense, so it’s a good challenge for us, but we’ll be ready to go.”
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