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Jared Goff's placement on latest stat chart offers a glimpse at how efficient Caleb Williams can become with Ben Johnson's help
Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

There's no question over the last three seasons that Detroit Lions' quarterback Jared Goff was one of the most efficient quarterbacks across the entire league.

It's the reason why Goff was an MVP finalist in 2024 and enters 2025 with his name viewed among the Top-10 players at his position.

The question we're all about to find out is: How much of Jared Goff's efficiency was created by former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and can Johnson create a similar style of play with his new quarterback?

The Chicago Bears hired Johnson as the team's next head coach back in January to overhaul the offense and maximize the abilities of quarterback Caleb Williams.

Already throughout the offseason, we've seen Johnson strip down Williams' game and rebuild it to fit how he used Goff in Detroit. As far as the offensive scheme goes, Johnson will be looking to run a similar style passing game build on high percentage designed throws for his quarterback.

"For me, it is completion percentage," Johnson said. "Usually when you’re talking about completion percentage, the distance from the line of scrimmage, the completion percentage goes down. If you’re going to emphasize higher completions and shorter throws, that’s where the run after catch for your pass catchers comes into play."

Those kind of plays include screens, shuffle passes and other easy completions to get the ball into the hands of your play-makers. Last season, Williams had one of the highest-rates in those type of throws, but lacked in efficiency compared to Goff.

To me, that's more a Ben Johnson stat than a Jared Goff stat. It speaks more to the play design itself but also the entire offensive operation.

With these kind of plays, blocking is critical to create maximum efficiency, from all players not just the offensive line. Which is why Johnson issued this warning to all the offensive skill players upon arriving to Chicago.

"What I'm going to be curious to see is what guys look like when the ball's not in their hands on offense," Johnson said. "How are you going to run your route when you might not be No. 1 in the progression? How are you going to block for your teammate when he has the ball?"

Everyone on the offensive side of the ball needs to be on their A-game and do their job, even when they don't have the ball, to find consistent success play-by-play.

From Williams' standpoint, it comes down to the basics of quarterback fundamentals; quick footwork, calling the right protections, and getting the ball out accurately.

By hitting on these "easy" completions and turning them into highly efficient plays, the offense can stay ahead of the sticks and begin to stack more and more plays. Failing to do so in 2024 is what caused the Bears to fall behind over and over again.

With the addition of Johnson calling this offense, things little things can get cleaned up and hopefully a similar level of results will follow.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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