Jared Goff: Penei Sewell May Be 'Best Athlete In NFL'

Penei Sewell almost recorded a touchdown against the Cowboys.

Detroit Lions offensive tackle Penei Sewell (58) / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions were able to take advantage of a depleted Dallas Cowboys' defense in their Week 6 victory.

After the game got out of hand, Detroit deployed a variety of plays that involved tackles being eligible, offensive linemen lining up as receivers and a hook-and-ladder intended to finish with right tackle Penei Sewell scampering into the end zone.

Unfortunately, an ineligible man downfield penalty on Frank Ragnow negated what could have been a scoring play for the 2021 No. 7 overall pick.

Speaking with 97.1 The Ticket, Jared Goff explained just how athletic Detroit's talented tackle is based on his size and strength.

Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) celebrates with offensive tackle Penei Sewell (58) / Eamon Horwedel-Imagn Images

"He might be the best athlete in the league," said Goff. "Pound for pound, you find somebody that runs like that, that can move like that, that has a little bit of wiggle like he has. He’s as good as I've ever seen."

It is hard to consider Detroit leaving meat on the bone after scoring 47 points on the road. But head coach Dan Campbell said earlier in the day on the team's flagship radio station if corrections are made, the team could have scored even more points.

"Yeah, I don't know if we did leave any meat on the bone. We were just going out there trying to play well," Goff said. "I don't think we were trying to be savage or anything like that, we were just trying to play well and execute our plays. We hit on a lot of them and when that happens you score a lot of points. I thought at the end there we weren't trying to pour it on there, we were just running the plays that were presented by their defense."

With all the various non-traditional formations and trick plays deployed, many pundits were left with the impression Detroit were trying to embarrass the Cowboys as part of a game that ended with a final of 47-9. Goff pushed back against that narrative, explaining that players were simply executing the plays they had put in for the week.

"We were just trying to win the game," Goff explained. "The play to Decker, it may have been a little tongue in cheek. But we wouldn't have run it if we didn't think it was gonna work. Same thing with the play to Penei. We've been practicing that play for a few years now.

"This week, the defense they were running presented it. It wasn't like we were trying to force feed it to him. It's the way the game was going, and the way it set up, it worked."