Does it feel like Lions quarterback Jared Goff doesn’t attack down the field very often? Bug you when the designed pass play on third down is a throw short of the yardage needed for converting the first down?
These are fairly common complaints and social media observations about the Lions offense. A recent breakdown from Doug Analytics of the targets and distances to go for all the throws indicates that there is some validity to the consternation.
Goff ranks near the bottom at attempting passes beyond the first down marker. The Lions quarterback is 27th out of 36 qualifying quarterbacks, sandwiched between Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Flacco, who has split time between Cleveland and Cincinnati this season. Goff’s throws go past the required conversion distance 38.6 percent of the time. The mean percentage in the league is 41.4.
On third down, Goff throws beyond the yardage needed for a first down on 52.3 percent of his attempts, which ranks 24th. It’s a little better, ranking-wise, on first downs: Goff is 21st at a 33 percent rate.
Does your QB throw past the 1st down marker? pic.twitter.com/SiUNTn7aIB
— Doug Analytics (@Doug_Analytics) November 20, 2025
Note that aggression in throwing past the chains is as much a function of the offensive scheme as the quarterback. Minnesota’s J.J. McCarthy is first, while Atlanta’s Michael Penix and Minnesota’s Carson Wentz (who replaced an injured McCarthy before being benched) are in the top 10. Aaron Rodgers of the Steelers is 35th, and Bo Nix–who runs a similar offense to the Lions as Denver’s QB under Sean Payton–is 30th.
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Jared Goff passing attempts for 1st down distance below NFL average
