Jared Goff is currently completing a career-high 71% of his passes over four games, which Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson credits to Goff’s advanced understanding of the game plan.

“He knows exactly what we want,” Johnson said. “He recognizes the bad situations, understands why each play is called, and identifies the best looks. He’s also aware of potential issues, and his ability to adjust when things aren’t timed perfectly has been impressive.”

Goff went 18-for-18 in the Lions’ Week 4 victory against the Seattle Seahawks, setting an NFL record for the most completions in a game without an incompletion. In the previous week, he was 12-for-12 in the first half against the Arizona Cardinals.

Goff has completed 19 consecutive passes and needs to start Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys with seven straight completions to break the NFL record shared by Ryan Tannehill, Marcus Mariota, Philip Rivers, and Nick Foles.

Johnson mentioned that starting Goff with easier passes isn’t part of his strategy.

“No,” he said. “We’re just playing football.”

Offensive Identity

When asked about the Lions’ offensive identity, Johnson described it in three words: physical, detailed, and explosive.

“We consider ourselves a very physical, detailed, and explosive unit,” Johnson said. “That’s what we aim to demonstrate every week. Our physicality is evident, especially in the run game, but our perimeter players also contribute by finishing plays. That’s how we define being physical.

“When you watch our tape, you see a deliberate approach in how players align, the depth of their routes, their execution, and fundamentals—that’s the detail aspect. So far this season, we’ve been quite explosive in both the running and passing games. I know our stats dipped due to the bye week, but before that, we were top-10 in explosive plays.”

Missed Opportunity

The Lions had a comfortable 21-7 lead at halftime against the Seahawks but missed an opportunity to score at the end of the second quarter when cornerback Khalil Dorsey was stopped after a short return on Jason Myers’ missed 62-yard field goal.

Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp acknowledged that the team should have utilized receiver Kalif Raymond or another offensive skill player as the safety returner for that play.

“On that play, we had a running clock without a timeout, so we sent out the field goal unit, knowing we needed a returner. We decided to put Dorsey back there, but I couldn’t find Raymond at the time, so we went with that group. In hindsight, we should have had a better option back there. I could have managed that better,” Fipp said.

Besides Raymond, Fipp mentioned that wide receiver Jameson Williams and running back Jahmyr Gibbs could also serve as viable returners.

Dorsey returned the missed kick to the 22-yard line but hesitated as he approached the Seahawks’ field-goal team, missing a setup for a return.

“I have confidence in Dorsey; he can perform well, but there were likely better options if we had more time to select the right player. The offense was far down the bench, and I didn’t want to give them 5 yards for a better chance at a kick.”

Linebacker Options

With Derrick Barnes out due to a knee injury, Alex Anzalone will continue as the primary strong-side linebacker. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn noted that Trevor Nowaske showed enough promise in limited action against the Seahawks to earn more playing time at that position.

“We don’t want to throw him into a major role just yet,” Glenn said. “That was just one game. While he opened our eyes to his abilities, we’ve known Nowaske since his arrival here and appreciate what he brings. We were disappointed to lose him last year, but we’re glad he’s back. We’ll continue to expand his role to help him reach his potential.”

Anzalone, initially the weak-side linebacker, recorded seven tackles and two quarterback hits while playing a larger pass rush role against Seattle. Nowaske had no tackles in eight defensive snaps.

Malcolm Rodriguez started at weak-side linebacker with Jack Campbell in the middle.

“Whenever there are issues in the linebacker group, we have five players who can step in at any moment, and we’ll keep looking at it that way,” Glenn said.

Two of a Kind

The upcoming Lions-Cowboys game features two of the NFL’s strongest-legged kickers: Dallas’ Brandon Aubrey and Detroit’s Jake Bates, both of whom took unusual paths to the league.

Aubrey played college soccer at Notre Dame and spent two years playing professionally before switching to football. He played two seasons in the USFL and earned first-team All-Pro honors in his first NFL season last year. Bates played two years of college soccer before moving to football, where he served as a kickoff specialist without attempting a field goal. He joined the Lions after one season with the Michigan Panthers of the UFL.

Fipp stated that Aubrey’s success last season helped him “have confidence” in Bates’ potential with some refinement.

“The bottom line is, these athletes are genuinely talented,” Fipp said. “They are skilled ball strikers; many have soccer backgrounds and experience in various sports. They’re not just high school kickers who’ve focused solely on that. These players are exceptional athletes, strong performers, and incredibly talented, and I believe… they have the ability to improve and develop.”