For better or for worse, the Chicago Bears will see a different version of Jared Goff on Sunday. This version of Goff doesn’t have an amazing Rams defense behind him. There is no offensive guru in Sean McVay coaching him, either. It’s a McVay-less Goff, who is winless without him.
During Goff’s rookie season, he played in seven games under head coach Jeff Fisher. In those games, Goff went 0-7, throwing just five touchdowns and seven interceptions with a 63.6 passer rating. He passed for 1,089 yards during that season.
In three games with the Lions. Goff is 0-3. He failed to make a Week 1 comeback at home against the 49ers. He followed that up with a blowout loss in Green Bay and then a heartbreaking loss last Sunday against the Ravens.
Not all has been terrible for Goff this season though. He’s passed for five touchdowns, two interceptions, and has 801 passing yards. He’s also completed 69.9% of his passes and has a 94.3 passer rating through three games with the Lions.
This Sunday, Goff will face off against the team that gives him a lot of trouble. No team gave him more trouble than the Bears did in 2018 and then again in 2019.
In his first two meetings against the Bears, he didn’t throw a single touchdown pass and turned the football over five times in the air. His passer rating was 33.9 in those two games. If he would have incompleted all 62 passes he threw against Chicago in both games, his passer rating would have been better.
In 2020, Goff turned things around, beating up on the Bears and throwing two passing touchdowns with a 108.1 passer rating.
This time around, Goff is without McVay. The 0-10 record without him is something that weighs in favor of Chicago. Overall, in three meetings against the Bears, he has two passing touchdowns, five interceptions, and 573 passing yards with just a 56.4 passer rating.
So, either the Bears will get back in the win column, in a game they should win, or they’ll be the first team Goff beats without McVay as his head coach.
After how poorly the Bears moved the ball against the Browns, it’s going to take a lot to not be the first team Goff beats without McVay. Chicago has a fantastic defense, but the defense can only do so much without help from the offense.
The interesting part of this matchup is how the Bears bounce back from one of their worst showings in team history on offense.
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