Schefter: Lions Should Extend Goff, St. Brown 'Sooner Rather than Later'

Adam Schefter believes the Lions are headed in the right direction.

Jared Goff / Junfu Han, USA TODAY NETWORK

You can add ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter to the growing list of individuals that believes the Detroit Lions, coming off an NFC North championship and a trip to the NFC North Championship Game, are headed in the right direction. 

“The Lions have made tremendous progress, and I think everyone can see what it meant to that city to have them win in the playoffs. That was an electric atmosphere twice, once for the Rams, once for the Buccaneers. One can only imagine what it would have been like if they would have won that game in San Francisco to advance to the Super Bowl. I think Michigan would have gone nuts for the Lions,” Schefter told Matt Dery on the latest “Locked on Lions Podcast” episode. “And just because you get that close one year, it does not ensure that you’ll get back the next year. But, I believe they’ve built a team here that’s going to be competitive for a while. There’s a lot of really good young talent, and if they can stay healthy, they should be able to compete every year. 

“They’ve brought in people who have done it the right way. Brad Holmes has done a great job, Mike Disner has done a great job, Dan Campbell has done a great job, John Dorsey. There have been some people instrumental in the success of that franchise, and it feels like it’s different because it is different. It has been different lately.”

Over the course of the offseason, Holmes has exercised financial restraint, while adding multiple players that should prove to be impactful for the organization (e.g. cornerback Carlton Davis, defensive lineman D.J. Reader and offensive guard Kevin Zeitler). 

While the fourth-year general manager has been criticized by some for not making a flashy enough move (i.e. adding a Danielle Hunter-or-Brian Burns-type player), he was commended by Schefter for the work he’s done to continue to build the Lions into a winner. Additionally, the longtime NFL insider believes Detroit will use this April’s draft to help it take the next step as a franchise. 

“They’re operating like a smooth, smart, effective organization that’s not getting ahead of itself, so I was not surprised,” Schefter said of the Lions’ financially sensible moves this offseason. “They were busy, they added players. They just didn’t add Danielle Hunter, a $25 million-dollar-a-year pass rusher. 

“D.J. Reader is somebody if he were healthy, I’m not going to tell you he would’ve been paid like Danielle Hunter. But, he would’ve been paid a lot of money. Like that guy is really good when he’s healthy. So, they need him to get healthy. They need their players to take a jump in their second year. But, they really hit on some great young players in the draft this year. So, this is a team that needs to find more help in the draft, and has shown it’s effective in doing that. And, if they can have a draft that’s anywhere like the one they had last year, watch out because then this team is really going to be loaded.”

Status of contract extensions for Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown

Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown have been two of the key players responsible for the Lions’ recent resurgence as a franchise. And, both of them could be in store for new contracts very soon.   

Goff is in the final year on a four-year, $134 million deal he signed in 2019 when he was still a member of the L.A. Rams. Meanwhile, St. Brown, a 2021 fourth-round draft pick, is in the last year of his rookie deal. 

If Schefter were running the Lions, he’d be trying to lock up the Pro Bowlers to new deals as soon as possible.   

“To me, I think it’d be better to do all these extensions sooner rather than later,” Schefter said. “There’s going to be some big quarterback deals that get done at some point this summer, Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love. Once those deals get done, the number on Jared Goff I would imagine would only go up. And, it’s similar for the wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who has proven himself to be one of the best young wide receivers in the game. Ja’Marr Chase wants a new deal, Tee Higgins wants a new deal, Jaylen Waddle wants a new deal, CeeDee Lamb wants a new deal. Lots of wide receivers want new deals. 

“So, you could act now or wait. And, I would imagine the agents of these players perhaps might want to wait. Because the longer they wait, the more the price is going to go up. If you’re the Lions, to me, you act sooner, because the price is going to go up. So, there’s a dance in there that they’re doing, and I’m sure they’ll figure out a way to get these deals done at some point this offseason.” 

And regarding whether Goff will get $50 million a season as part of his new deal, Schefter expects the signal-caller and Detroit to continue to dance around the number a bit before reaching a resolution.

“I would imagine that Jared Goff’s people think that it should start with a five ($50 million), and I’m sure the Lions argue that it should start with a four ($40 million),” Schefter said of the figure for Goff’s looming extension. “So, where does it come in, and we’re going to find out ultimately where that ends up. And, I’m going to guess that both sides have to give in a little. Maybe that means more guaranteed money, lower average. I don’t know how they’re going to do this, but I think we just hit on the debate right there. I’m sure Jared Goff’s people say $50-plus (million), and I’m sure the Lions say I’m making this $45-plus (million). Now, we’ll let them figure out exactly how it goes from there.” 

What Lions will do in 2024 NFL Draft 

Holmes and the Lions possess seven total picks headed into this April’s draft, including the No. 29 overall pick in the first round. 

Just like many pundits, Schefter could see Holmes going in a variety of different directions with his first-round pick. 

“When you’re picking at 29, the pick is made for you, honestly,” Schefter expressed. “You just have to see how the board falls. You have an idea of a few guys you’d like, and you hope that all three of them, four of them, five of them make it to you. And, there’s no assurance that that will happen. So, by the way, if the guys that you like are off the board, there may be a team that wants to come up to take, I don’t know, (Oregon’s) Bo Nix or (Washington’s) Michael Penix or a quarterback at the back of the draft to get that extra fifth-year option on that contract. So, maybe they trade back, and get extra picks to fill holes at pass-rusher or offensive line or wherever it may be. I think there’s a lot of ways that the draft could go for a team like Detroit. And, the draft will be shaped by what the teams in front of them do, as much as what they have in mind going into it.”