Lions QB Jared Goff 'hopeful' he'll play vs. Packers

Both Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Aaron Rodgers have already said that the team's starters should play in at least some of Sunday's regular-season finale against the 2-13-1 Detroit Lions even though the Packers already clinched the No. 1 overall seed for the NFC playoffs. 

It appears the Lions could also have a key figure back in the lineup for that matchup. 

Per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk, Lions starting quarterback Jared Goff told 97.1 The Ticket on Tuesday he's "hopeful" he'll be cleared to play versus Green Bay after he missed the past two contests. Goff was on the reserve/COVID-19 list for Week 16 and sidelined this past Sunday with a knee injury. 

Goff admitted "it’ll be pretty disappointing" if Detroit's staff doesn't allow him to play because it's determined he can't adequately protect himself in the pocket due to the knee after he practices during the week. 

Goff enjoyed his best two outings of what quickly became a disappointing campaign in December and, per ESPN stats, currently sits 18th among eligible signal-callers with a 90.0 passer rating and 24th with a 36.4 total QBR. He's completed 67.0% of his passes for 3,007 yards with 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions during his first season with the Lions.