Allen Park — A day after Jalen Hurts signed the richest contract in NFL history, at least by average annual value, quarterback Jared Goff acknowledged he has yet to enter negotiations with the Lions on a possible extension.
Technically, there’s no rush. Goff has two years remaining on the four-year, $134 million pact he signed with the Los Angeles Rams in 2019. But while his next deal is unlikely to enter the same stratosphere of Hurts’ extension, the salary cap isn’t going down anytime soon, meaning the cost of getting a new deal in place for Goff will also likely continue to go up.
So it’s not unreasonable to think the Lions might explore the possibility shortly after the draft. That was the time frame for Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow, who signed an extension that made him the NFL’s highest-paid center in May 2021.
Goff isn’t pressing the issue, but he’s all ears if the Lions want to open the conversation.
“I mean, of course you’d be open,” Goff said Tuesday. “It hasn’t been brought to my attention, but yeah, of course open to anything. Not up to me. I’m a player, I don’t have to make those decisions. And if I did, I would have made that decision a long time ago: Give me and all my friends all the money in the world. But I just get to play, and if that comes about, that’d be great. But we’ll see.”
As strange as it might sound, given Goff has cap hits of $31 million and $31.7 million the next two seasons, his deal has become a relative bargain as he’s played his way through it. By annual salary, it now ranks 12th among NFL quarterbacks, checking in behind new deals signed by Daniel Jones and Derek Carr this offseason.
“That’s how the league goes,” Goff said. “Guy gets paid, and then 10 more guys get paid, you’re toward the bottom. Hopefully (you sign again), and things go like this. Yeah, hopefully I can play for a long time, play in this league, win games, win championships, and the money and the contract all comes with that. But just enjoying your time in the present, enjoying the people around you and your teammates, is the most important thing. All that will come. And congrats to Jalen.”
Goff, 28, is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. In 2022, he completed 65.1% of his passes for 4,438 yards, 29 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. He closed the season riding a franchise-record streak of 329 consecutive passes without a pick.
The Lions still haven’t dismissed drafting a quarterback early in the upcoming draft, but they have repeatedly committed to Goff as the team’s starter. There’s been a greater emphasis on improving the backup situation. Regardless of what the team does, general manager Brad Holmes said it’s important to keep Goff informed of the plan, which is something the quarterback has appreciated.
“We’ve had good talks, more toward the end of last season or right after the end of last season,” Goff said. “Everything has been clear and open. I’ve got all the trust in the world in Brad and (coach) Dan (Campbell) and everything they do and really excited to see what we do and where we go.”
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers