00:00All right, Jared, as always, thank you very much for being with us on this Tuesday
00:04and coming off a very nice swing going into the bye week.
00:08It's got to feel good to have that one in your back pocket with some time off to rest up.
00:13Yeah, it always feels good to go to W no matter what time of the year it is.
00:17But, yeah, certainly heading into a bye with a get to enjoy it maybe a bit more
00:21and get a little bit of rest here and come back and try to keep that momentum going.
00:25Well, that was the kind of offensive explosion the Lions fans love to see.
00:28I'm sure you guys love to see it too, but it didn't come until after a rough start
00:33on the first three drives, and then it seemed like the fourth and three decision
00:36on the fourth drive to go for it, it really kind of changed the demeanor.
00:40Was that the kick in the backside that you guys really needed at that time?
00:45Yeah, we just needed someone to make a play, and we were kind of shooting ourselves
00:50in the foot repeatedly there, and that catch by Sam really woke us up a little bit.
00:56You know, he makes that fourth and three catch, and then we score, I believe, a few plays later.
01:02And then again, third and 13, throw it to Sam again, he gets 12 yards,
01:06and we throw it again into him on fourth and one.
01:07Like, those three plays by him were so massive and changed the whole game.
01:11The fourth and three, I heard something post-game, and I guess I want, from your perspective,
01:17first of all, it looked like a very small window.
01:19Secondly, I believe Dan said he was not your first read.
01:22Can you take us through that play from your perspective?
01:26Yeah, he's not.
01:27He's on the backside of the progression, and, you know, I really think I kind of missed it.
01:31I wish I would have put it just a little bit more out in front of him
01:34and made an easier catch for him, but he picked us up, and I'm glad he did.
01:38I'm glad we converted, because otherwise you guys would be killing us right now if we didn't.
01:42Well, my other question is, can one play really kickstart a team?
01:46Because after that, it was, yeah, you guys completely took off after that moment.
01:52Yeah, you know, you don't want it to take something like that, but, you know, sometimes it does.
01:57I wish we could come out of the gates and score on every drive.
02:01I really do.
02:02It's never been done in the NFL to score on every drive all season, but I wish we could.
02:07And I do say that jokingly, but I also think there is something to starting fast
02:12that we do need to do a better job of, and we will be intentional about that.
02:15But, you know, we scored on seven out of ten possessions,
02:18and typically it's going to be pretty good chances of winning.
02:22I mean, that play alone, that was a fourth and three from basically midfield,
02:26and then there was another one with fourth and four from the eight-yard line.
02:30These weren't like punch-button Dan Campbell got to go for it on fourth-down plays.
02:34Can you talk about the confidence that that gives you guys as an offensive unit
02:38that the coach is like, I mean, he's always gone for it,
02:41but these were a couple of different type of situations where he went for it.
02:45Yeah, you know, I think that just, you know, we've been saying this for years
02:49about, like, him believing in us and us making them right,
02:51and I would imagine our fourth-down percentage is as good as anyone in the league
02:55since Dan's been here.
02:56And, you know, we practice these situations.
03:00We practice these pressure moments, and when they come up in the game,
03:03they're less stressful for us than they are, hopefully, for the other guys.
03:06And, yeah, we love when he puts us in those spots and make them right,
03:10and we try to do it more often than not.
03:12Obviously, Jameer Gibbs had a great game, but I want to talk about something
03:15that probably doesn't end up getting as much discussion.
03:18You had a completion of Brock Wright where there was a free blitzer coming up the middle,
03:22and he stepped up and picked up that blitz.
03:24And that's such an underrated play, but a huge play.
03:27What did you see on that play?
03:31Yeah, he did it a couple times in the game.
03:33I mean, I think, you know, he'd probably just tell you that's part of his job description
03:37is, you know, to pass protect, but he is, you know, it is hard.
03:41It's a hard job, and it's a hard job for somebody who's touching the ball
03:44as often as he is to take another hit on himself and stick his nose in there
03:47and protect me.
03:49And I certainly appreciate the effort and all that goes into it,
03:52but I know to him it's just, you know, what he's supposed to do,
03:54and he just keeps on doing it.
03:56You look like you may have been caught a little bit off guard on the Gibbs touchdown run
04:00where you're carrying out the bootleg fake, and he ends up reversing his field.
04:05What was going through your mind when you saw that he was actually coming
04:07in your direction, headed towards the end zone?
04:10Yeah, I just wanted to see if I could keep up with him.
04:13You know, I so often have to watch him run out in front
04:15and wanted to see if I could hit my top speed on my tracker
04:19and wanted to check what our speeds were next to each other there.
04:23Did you check?
04:25I haven't checked yet.
04:26No, I need to check that out because that would probably be my top speed
04:28of the season right there.
04:29You've got to report back and let us know how you matched up with Jameer.
04:33The fourth and fourth touchdown to Jamison Williams,
04:36that looked like more of a free throw than a fastball
04:39as he came open in the back of the end zone.
04:42Take us through that play.
04:45Yeah, they played man coverage and had two hole players underneath
04:49and had a nice little concept up there that we've been practicing for a little bit.
04:54Sure enough, he ran right past the defender that was supposed to cover him
04:57and was open and put it on him.
04:58Very simple, and he made a great catch.
05:01As excited as you guys were throughout the game and scoring touchdowns
05:05and looking great as an offense, a defense getting five three and outs
05:08against Arizona, were you more fired up about the Jack Fox punt
05:13at the end of the game than anything else?
05:15Because it sure looked like you were fired up about it.
05:18I was excited.
05:19Yeah, that was a good one.
05:20And I know how meaningful that is for him and that punt team
05:24when they're working on that all week.
05:26And to get one there down at the one and to kind of execute it to perfection.
05:29And in a situation where it really doesn't matter how good his punt is,
05:32the game's pretty much in hand.
05:35To do it right and to execute it at that high of a level is awesome,
05:39and it speaks to who we are.
05:40And I think the whole game really speaks to, you know,
05:42it felt like who we are and our identity really shined through
05:45in all those moments that we've been talking about.
05:48You know, we were talking about how you can make a case
05:51that the Rams lost last night because of special teams.
05:54But we talked yesterday how your special teams really set you guys up
05:58with good field position.
05:59It's an underrated and underappreciated part of the game,
06:02but I'm sure you can speak to how much that helps the offense.
06:06Yeah, man, we spent a lot of time on it, and it is a three-phase game.
06:10You know, it's offense, defense, and special teams,
06:12and they're as much a part of it as the offense and the defense,
06:15and those guys take a lot of pride in it.
06:16And I know here we certainly put a lot of emphasis on it,
06:20and we know that those guys can affect the game,
06:22and we use them as a weapon, and Fox is a weapon, and Bates is a weapon.
06:26And they help us, man.
06:28They really do.
06:28And I think typically the teams that, you know,
06:31do play in three phases like that, you know, go a long way.
06:33You took more deep shots in this game than I remember?
06:37Was that part of the game plan,
06:38or was it just what their defense presented you as the game went on?
06:44I don't know.
06:44It's just what they presented me.
06:45I think we got deep shots up every week,
06:47and sometimes they play the right coverage for it,
06:50and sometimes they don't.
06:51And there were some chances to have them there in that game
06:53and some other chances where they covered it.
06:55What do you think it would have been like to have Dan Campbell as a teammate
06:59and in the huddle and as a tight end target to throw to?
07:02And is there anybody on the team that you think resembles
07:06how Dan Campbell would have played?
07:09Yeah, yeah, it would have been great.
07:10I mean, I can only imagine, you know, the tenacity he played with
07:15and, you know, everyone that's ever played with him
07:16called him such a great teammate.
07:18And, I mean, the easiest answer is the 89 that we have ourselves.
07:21Brock Wright plays tight end and kind of plays it in a similar style
07:24that Dan used to.
07:25And, you know, Brock's a great teammate as well.
07:27There was one play that didn't happen.
07:29When the ball got ripped free and it landed in Penny Sewell's hands,
07:32it got blown dead.
07:34I was excited to see what was about to happen.
07:37Could you imagine Penny Sewell in the open field with the football?
07:42Yeah, I can see it.
07:44You know, we've done it.
07:45And it certainly brought back some memories
07:47and maybe some ideas of maybe we've got to get the ball in his hands
07:50a little bit more like we had in the past
07:52and get him in open field, and he's a tough guy to tackle.
07:55I can guarantee that.
07:56What was the flight back from Arizona like?
07:59I mean, do you guys watch the game, the game film?
08:02Is it a flying pub?
08:04What's it like?
08:06No alcohol on the plane.
08:09It was a flying hydration of water for sure.
08:14You know, it was fun.
08:15I think, you know, now in year 11, you know,
08:18I really try to cherish those moments
08:20because the long plane flight back, you know,
08:23after a massive win like that where, you know,
08:26the vibes are high, man.
08:27It's fun.
08:27People are hanging out, talking, and, you know,
08:30playing games or whatever, and it's a lot of fun, man.
08:33The bye week.
08:34What's on the to-do list to get even better
08:36when you guys pick it back up with two huge divisional games?
08:40Yeah, finding a way to, you know, keep this momentum going.
08:42I think I said it after the game.
08:43I wish we could play, you know, today, you know,
08:46as soon as possible just with how well we were able
08:48to put it together there.
08:49But, you know, catch our breath, get a little rest,
08:53and come back and realize that, you know,
08:55we've set a new standard for ourselves
08:57and that what is capable is right there in that game
09:00last, yes, two days ago.
09:01And we've got to make sure that we don't get comfortable
09:05or anything and keep it going.
09:07All right.
09:07Every week we ask the listeners to send questions over
09:10and Kang, our producer behind the glass,
09:12if it's through them and Kang, what do we got this week?
09:15Okay, Jared, this one comes from Gil in Rochester Hills.
09:18He asked, you have a 12-hour flight to take.
09:20You have the middle seat.
09:22Which two teammates do you least want to be sitting between?
09:25Oh, gosh.
09:28Mahogany, one.
09:31Smelly and wide.
09:33So he doesn't smell like rich mahogany.
09:36No.
09:36It's not a leather-bound book.
09:39Two, who would be the next one?
09:40I don't know, probably Tate for the same reason.
09:43Or Juice.
09:45And I love those guys.
09:46Oh, Aaron, you want them in front of you, not next to you.
09:49Of course.
09:50Well, shoot, in front of me I might catch a whiff, too.
09:52So I want them maybe right behind me on a plane.
09:57I love those guys, but they're going to take up a lot of space
09:59and a lot of air quality for me.
10:02Jared, appreciate the time as always.
10:04And I think it'll be two weeks before we talk again.
10:07So enjoy the bye week and good luck.
10:10All right.
10:11Thanks, guys.
10:11Thanks, Jared.
10:12There he is, Jared Goff, here on 97.1.
10:15Listeners are going to get Jared in trouble.
