Lions and Dan Campbell think Jared Goff can be long-term QB

Jared Goff hasn’t played as a backup quarterback in recent weeks, and the Lions don’t view him as such.

Going into Sunday’s game against Minnesota with four wins in their previous five games, the Lions’ “plan is for Goff to be in Detroit for the future” as a starter, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport.

That report came before Goff threw for 330 yards and three touchdowns in leading the Lions to an upset 34-23 victory over the Vikings on Sunday, improving Detroit to 6-7.

“Here’s the one that’s consistent, man, just make the right decisions, take care of the football, and he did it,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said after last week’s win against Jacksonville. “And it’s been five weeks now and that’s a big part of why we’re winning.

“He makes very smart decisions and we were going to put a lot of that on him (Sunday) with his arm. It was going to be big – put it in the air, we just felt like that was the way to attack this team. And he did that and more.

Campbell even called Goff his “MVP” after the effort against the Jaguars.

Goff, 28, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 draft, was secured before last season in the trade that sent Matthew Stafford to the Rams. He entered Sunday’s game with 3,022 passing yards with 19 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 95.7 passer rating, his highest since leading the Rams to the Super Bowl in 2019.

The Lions also control the Rams’ 2023 first-round pick — currently No. 4 overall — from that deal.