Jared Goff won a ton of hearts in Detroit and beyond with a picture-perfect 18 completions on 18 attempts against the Seahawks. While the quarterback achieved this milestone in the Lions’ 42-29 win, he fell just two passes short of an NFL record. Surprisingly, this led fans to bring Patrick Mahomes into the mix.
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Previously, the record was held by Kurt Warner for 10 consecutive passes without an incompletion. Now, Goff has shattered that record; however, this stellar stat won’t be recognized as a single-game completion percentage record, as the league apparently requires 20 attempts for the feat to be considered one.
Lions QB Jared Goff finished 18-of-18 tonight, an NFL record for pass attempts in a game without an incompletion.
The previous record was 10 by Kurt Warner in 2005.
FWIW, NFL won’t recognize this as single game completion percentage record because that requires 20 attempts.
— Nick Wagoner (@nwagoner) October 1, 2024
While Detroit fans were overjoyed at Goff working his magic with wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, there was an undercurrent of resentment as well. Lions fans felt frustrated by the absence of the official tag of an NFL record on the quarterback’s performance and believed that the league was biased against them.
On top of this, some fans believe that if Mahomes had been the one to achieve such a record, it would have been promptly honored. For instance, one user on Instagram wrote, “I’m sure if Mahomes went 18-18, the NFL would change the rule. What a joke the league is.”
Another netizen echoed the sentiment while also firing shots at analyst Chris Colinsworth, “Bro if Mahomes went 18 of 18 they would have breaking news the internet. That would have been headline news. Cris Collinsworth would have an aneurysm.”
While Detroit fans had a plethora of opinions about the predicament, the one unifying sentiment was praise for Goff. The unstoppable QB also made history for the team alongside St. Brown, as the Lions became the first team to have two players throw a touchdown, catch a touchdown, and achieve a perfect 100% completion percentage in the same game.
Amidst all the chaos, the star of the show remained unaware of the feat until the end! When ESPN reporter Lisa Salters told Goff his immaculate stats, the QB had a two-word response, “Was I?”
He further added, “It’s good when the ball doesn’t hit the ground, it’s a good day.”
That said, the matchup between Detroit and Seattle was iconic in more ways than one. Apart from the record set and broken, there was a unique play in action that reminded audiences of the 2018 Super Bowl.
Detroit Lions’ insane trick play
With a lead of 21-14 in the third quarter, the 29-year-old QB took the snap and handed the pigskin off to St. Brown. The WR then rolled to the right and threw the ball back to Goff in the end zone.
By turning the tables this way, the WR scored the first receiving touchdown, while the QB recorded the first receiving touchdown for the team!
Dubbed ‘Philly Special,’ the play was first seen in the 2018 championship where QB Nick Foles and TE Trey Burton executed it against the Patriots. Goff later revealed how the play was in the works behind the scenes for quite some time, and they finally decided to test it in Monday’s game.
“That play’s been in for a long time and we’ve just never gotten in the right situation for it to get called,” Goff said via Heavy. “I think we actually have called it in a game before, and then if it’s not the right look I get out of it, but that was the right look.”
Even former QB RGIII gushed about the play on X:
Amon Ra St. Brown has more TD passes than Jared Goff.
Jared Goff has more receiving TDs than Amon Ra.
That’s right. You read that right. pic.twitter.com/UKQAyYH2gd— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) October 1, 2024
The Detroit Lions seem to be off to a promising start with three victories under their belt, entering Week 5. For their next bout, the Jared Goff-led team will face the Dallas Cowboys on Oct 14.
