Jared Goff had the worst college record of any No. 1 pick and it doesn't matter at all
Though most people watching the NFL draft have never seen top pick Jared Goff, who went No. 1 to the Los Angeles Rams, throw a live pass, many can easily recite this seemingly damning stat: the three-year starter at California has the worst college won-loss record of any quarterback taken No. 1 in the draft since 1967 (the era of the common draft).
2016 — Jared Goff, California, 14-23 (.378)
1975 — Steve Bartkowski, California, 8-13-1 (.386)
1983 — John Elway, Stanford, 15-18 (.455)
1999 — Tim Couch, Kentucky, 12-30 (.480)
1993 — Drew Bledsoe, Washington State, 14-14 (500)
And that can't be good, right?
(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
No, going 14-23 isn't a badge of honor or anything, but it's also something that'll have no bearing on Goff's NFL success and, overall, is completely, totally and utterly meaningless. All you have to do to prove that is to look at who was No. 2 on the list before Thursday night — a guy named John Elway. Things seemed to work out pretty well for him (after he dabbled in baseball and petulantly refused to play for the team that first drafted him).
As Elway proved, a quarterback's won/loss record, whether in college or the pros is, on the whole, fairly meaningless. Why? The QB, though the most important player on the field, is just one of 30-or-so players trying to get their team a W. And for as much as a game is in a quarterback's hands, there's more that's not.
Elway dabbled in another sport rather than play after his drafting. (Photo by David Madison/Getty Images)
Is it Tony Romo's fault if his rushing attack is horrible, causing defenses to load up the secondary? When a quarterback gets sacked 65 times, how much of it is on him and how much of it is on his offensive line? Why is it Drew Brees' fault if his offense puts up 42 points and the Saints defense gives up 49? And, on the flip side, is Peyton Manning a better quarterback because his defense gifted him a title this year? Of course not. Sometimes things are beyond your control, for better or worse. It's all about context and Goff's story requires it.
After Jeff Tedford was fired at Cal in 212, Sonny Dykes went to Berkeley and, in his first year, started a freshman quarterback named Jared Goff. With the true freshman starting and a coach working with players outside his system in his first season in a major college football conference, Cal went 1-11, a record that immediately ruined whatever career mark Goff would have at Cal.
The next two years, Cal improved to 5-7 and then 8-5, with a win in the Armed Forces Bowl in Goff's final game. He finished first in the NCAA in touchdowns in his sophomore and junior seasons, with 77 TDs against 20 interceptions. He was above 60% completion percentage every year. Last season he led the NCAA with 4,714 passing yards, which comes to 393 yards per game.
(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
The record is the record, sure, but numbers, stats and facts are so easy to manipulate. Consider the following two statements:
1. Jared Goff has the worst record of any quarterback taken No. 1 in the common draft.
2. Jared Goff, who was 18 when he played his first game at Cal, brought a team that was 1-11 under a new regime in his freshman season all the way to an 8-5 mark with a bowl win in his final season as a junior. Along the way he set conference and school records in touchdowns, passing yards and various other categories, becoming one of the most decorated quarterbacks in Pac 12 history.
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
Both are true. The second is far more important than the first, but even Goff's prolific numbers are now rendered trivial. Johnny Manziel had spectacular college stats and one of the most memorable wins of the decade. Tim Tebow was a college football god, much like Jason White and dozens of others whose success didn't make the leap with them to the NFL.
Goff may be great, he may be good or he may be another Ryan Leaf. But no matter what happens in the NFL, his pro career won't be defined by what he did at Berkeley.