Tom Brady Dishes Praise to Jared Goff During Lions' Rout Cowboys

The former Patriots star says Goff has benefitted from a chip on his shoulder after being dumped by the L.A. Rams

Jared Goff calls signals during Detroit's win at Dallas / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

On the final day in his 20s, Jared Goff was on top of the world.

The former Cal star, who turns 30 on Monday, threw three touchdown passes, led the Detroit Lions to a 47-9 rout of the Cowboys in Dallas and earned high praise from NFL quarterback legend and FOX analyst Tom Brady.

Brady called the Lions, now 4-1, the best team in the NFC.

And he went out of his way to compliment a fellow Bay Area native who has written a successful second act in the NFL with the Lions. Brady said Goff’s response to what was deemed a slap in the face when the Rams traded him to the Lions for Matthew Stafford has been impressive

“I just think that he’s really ascended to a great position as a leader of a franchise,” Brady said. “Him getting knocked down when he was with the Rams and getting to the Super Bowl and not getting over it  . . . 

“When they make the trade to send Stafford to L.A., (Goff’s) got a little chip on his shoulder. You’re kind of a California kid, you grow up in California and go to school at Cal, get drafted by the Rams at No. 1 overall. It’s maybe the first time in his football career things really didn’t work out.

“Now you get traded to Detroit — you go to the Midwest and you’ve got to figure out how to toughen up.”

Goff has embraced his new football home. The team has improved each of his four seasons and last year made it to the NFC championship game before losing 34-31 to the 49ers.

Brady, who grew up in the San Mateo area and played college ball at Michigan, can relate in some ways to Goff’s path. He was the 199th pick in the 2000 NFL draft - 198 picks lower than Goff was selected in 2016.

“I went through a very similar experience. I was a California kid and I went to the Midwest to Michigan,” he said. "The fan base in Michigan, they love football and they’re supporting Goff the same way I got supported when I was at Michigan. They toughened me up, made me a better player.

“When I see Goff out there, I love the chip on his shoulder. I hope he never loses that because that resilience and determination is so critical to long-term success.”

Goff was 18 for 25 for 315 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions at Dallas in his most prolific performance of the season. His counterpart, Cowboys quarterback Dan Prescott, had a much tougher afternoon, going 17 for 33 for 178 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns.