Detroit Lions About to Find Out if They Really Can Do Worse Than Jared Goff
Generally, when a backup quarterback is forced into action on a bad team, someone says they can't be any worse than the regular starter. For example, Jared Goff is coming off one of the saddest performances ever caught on film. He completed 14 of 25 passes for 114 yards in a 16-16 tie. Surely, you couldn't do worse than that and we may find out this weekend as Goff is injured. Career backup Tim Boyle will take first team reps this week and possibly start against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
#Lions coach Dan Campbell tells reporters that QB Jared Goff (oblique) won’t practice today. Reserve Tim Boyle, still on IR but with his window open, will take first-team reps — potentially opening the door to Boyle starting.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 17, 2021
Now, when I say "career backup," I am not underselling Boyle's time in the NFL. Boyle went undrafted out of Eastern Kentucky and spent three seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He has four career pass attempts which all came on November 24, 2019. He has been on the field for 41 offensive snaps in his career and 22 of those resulted in kneel downs which is why he has career stats of 18 carries for -16 yards.
Are you ready to host Tim Boyle for Thanksgiving dinner? Because if Goff's oblique doesn't heal in the next eight days Boyle is probably going to crash whatever family gathering you have planned.
We really are going to find out if the 0-8-1 Detroit Lions can do worse than Tim Boyle. Maybe the most impressive part of all of this is that Boyle has been on the IR list the entire season after he broke his thumb in August. Not only has he not been taking first team snaps, he doesn't appear to have been practicing at all.
Does anyone know what happened to David Blough, who has apparently been backing up Goff all season? We may find out all of this and more on Thanksgiving. Whether we like it or not.