Jared Goff against the blitz has been the Detroit Lionsโ surest thing this season. According to PFF, Goff has completed 30 of 36 passes against extra rushers for 304 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions. That is 83.3% at 8.4 yards per attempt, and PFF charts zero turnover-worthy throws on those snaps.
The Carolina Panthers blitz on 40% of opponent dropbacks, the seventh-highest rate in the league, per Sharp Football Analysis. Something has to give Sunday night in Charlotte.
Goffโs full season line says the same thing. Through three games he has completed 70.6% of his passes for 802 yards, eight touchdowns and zero interceptions, and Detroit has scored exactly 31 points in all three games.
Carolina Has to Blitz to Get Home
Carolinaโs problem is what happens when it only rushes four. In the Panthersโ 21-18 Week 3 loss to the Cleveland Browns, Jeremy Raisman of Pride of Detroit charted a 33.3% pressure rate when Carolina did not blitz against 55.6% when it did, at 2.93 and 2.76 seconds to pressure. That is one game, and the split is PFF data read secondhand rather than a season number, but it lines up with the blitz rate: Ejiro Everoโs front needs extra bodies to get there.
The extra bodies cost more this week. Carolina placed both starting cornerbacks, Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson Jr., on injured reserve Wednesday, after Hornโs quad injury first surfaced on Sept. 28. Sending five with backups in coverage behind them is how a pressure call turns into a long completion.
Jared Goff Against the Blitz Is Carolinaโs Worst Draw
Goff is one of those quarterbacks who knows how to get the football out of his hands in a hurry. If the Panthers blitz him as often as they have blitzed everyone else, it is going to be a long night for their defense.
Carolina has already had one of those. The Panthers gave up 59 points at home in Week 1 to Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears, in the highest-scoring season opener in NFL history. This could be another game where Carolinaโs defense has no answers, blitz or no blitz.
Sam LaPorta and Jahmyr Gibbs Should Eat
Sunday could be a big game for tight end Sam LaPorta. Jahmyr Gibbs and Amon-Ra St. Brown will need the ball in their hands often, and a better night from Jameson Williams would make this offense even harder to cover. If the Lions offensive line holds up, Goffโs completion percentage against the blitz speaks for itself.
How to Watch Lions vs. Panthers
- Matchup: Detroit Lions (2-1) at Carolina Panthers (1-2)
- Date/time: Sunday, Oct. 4, 8:20 p.m. ET
- Venue: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
- TV: NBC
- Streaming: Peacock
- Radio: 97.1 The Ticket (WXYT-FM)
