November 12, 2025
Opening Statement: “Philadelphia. Eagles, good team. Really good team. I think what’s most glaring about them is that they win. They know how to win. They’ve got a style, they have an identity. They know how to take it to the end of the game, possess the ball, and finish it with it in their hand with a dub. So, they’ve been able to do that, they’ve mastered it. (Eagles Head Coach) Coach Sirianni’s done a hell of a job with that crew. They’re very talented, outstanding O-line. We know about (Eagles RB Saquon) Barkley, we know about those receivers. (Eagles QB) Jalen Hurts runs the ship there, man. He’s an outstanding Q, man. Can run, can make those throws, takes his one on ones. So, dangerous, potent offense. The tight end, a good player. A really good player. And then defensively, man, the engine of this defense, that front. Those guys can get after it. They added (Eagles LB Jaelan) Phillips to it. They got (Eagles EDGE) Nolan (Smith) back. The D-tackles there in the middle. It’s a disruptive front, they get after it. Backers are smart, and they’re aggressive. They play downhill, sideline to sideline. DBs, umbrella coverage, but then they’ll match up quite a bit too. So, smart crew, know how to play. Traditionally has gotten takeaways. I know not as much as they have in the past, but they’re always going after the ball, it’s all over the tape. Good special teams crew, they’ve got some returners that can hurt you. This’ll be a huge test for us, on the road at their place against a championship team, and we’re excited about it. We’re excited.”
On Lions QB Jared Goff and if he believes he is playing his best football: “I just feel like he’s gotten better every year, that’s me. So yeah, I guess to answer that question, yes, I do. I think he’s settled into his own to where he just continues to take it another notch and just continues to get better. Process information, the game slows down for him. He’s playing at a high level. I mean, the amount of – simply in this walkthrough, this is the first taste of this gameplan going into Philly. What he – it’s just unbelievable, what he’s able to grasp, retain, get us into the right play, and we literally just gave it to him. You don’t even have time to digest it. You’re running onto the field and now you’re going through it, you’re walking through it. That’s one of his superpowers, right? He plays with the gray matter, and he’s got the ability to put it on the spot in tight coverage. I think that’s rare to have both. But he knows what helps him and what makes him who he is. He’s got to be able to rely on that. He’s not a guy who’s going to be able to – he’s not (Ravens QB) Lamar Jackson. So, he leans on what his abilities and skills are. He’s playing at a high level.”
On how much he has put thought into stopping the Eagles’ ‘tush push’ considering they do not typically see teams who utilize the play: “I mean, I’ve thought about it, we’ve thought about it. I thought there was a chance we may play them last year, really the last two years. It’s always come up in conversations with us, kind of, ‘What would you do, how would you handle it?’ There again, it’s nothing easy about. I mean look, every team can say they’ve got something and then they run it on everybody and have success. They’ve mastered it, they play with leverage, they know the snap count, and then they’ve got a couple of curve balls off of it. So, you’ve got to be careful. If it’s an all-out sellout with 11 people, then they’re off on the perimeter. But we’ve talked about it. Look, we know. We’ve got a plan, we’ve got an idea. You’ve got to execute. And if you don’t, you’ve got to line up and do it again if it comes up again and just find a way to stop them. Hopefully, it’s a critical. If you end up getting three or four of them in a game, maybe it’s that one that you stop that changes the whole game.”
On why he is not an advocate for banning the ‘tush push’ play and the officiating problems with the play this year: “Here’s why. I’m a purist, man. You take something else out of the game, then we’re taking the next thing out of the game, then you’re taking another thing out of the game. And pretty soon, we don’t have pads anymore. Pretty soon, you’re only playing thirty minutes. And then pretty soon, it’s – so, I don’t want to take it out of the game. It’s something, a team’s got a niche, they found something, they’re good at it, and it’s for everybody else to stop, and it’s unique, and it’s physical. More than anything, I just don’t want to take anything else out of the game. I just want to leave the game alone. That’s me.”
On if he has thought about implementing a version of the ‘tush push’ play: “Yeah, we’ve talked about it. We’ve talked about. But I think some of it too is – I just know me, if it’s something that I really want to do, then I want to invest in it. And that means that I want to practice it. Like, I want to work it. When you start talking about, ‘Alright, we’re going to rep this about four or five times a day guys, line up. Put your nose about an inch from the ground.’ It’s a little different when you start thinking in those terms. But we’ve talked about it, we’ve tinkered in practice every once in a while. Just not quite there. We’ve got some other things we like and we can do.”
On how much getting a victory against the Eagles matters considering the team has not beaten them since he has been head coach: “Just want to win, man. That’s what being competitive is, you just want to win. And yeah, those guys – we’ve played them twice, they got our number twice. They got after us both times, really. I mean, we fought our way back in in ’22, but really, we were down pretty good. They just, they have a style and they’re very good at it. And I wouldn’t say there’s anything necessarily complex about it, but it’s very sound. It’s very sound across the board. And like I say, (Eagles Head Coach) Nick (Sirianni)’s done an unbelievable job. And then (Eagles Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Vic) Fangio, he’s a legend, man. It’s stood the test of time, that style of defense, the way they play, the coverage, the rush, goes hand in hand. And it’s a pain in the ass, it’s hard. It’s hard to deal with offensively. But I just think it’s good, sound football. And they don’t beat themselves. At the end of the day, they don’t beat themselves. And when they need a critical play, they come up with a critical play. And that’s what champions do, and that’s why they’ve been able to have the success that they’ve had.”
On what about the team’s defensive personnel allows them to stick with three linebackers for a whole game: “Well, it’s those players. It’s the versatility of those guys. I’ve mentioned this before, but there’s – of all the good players that we have, and we’ve got a lot of good players that do different things for us, that I think makes us a very good defense. It’s (Lions DB Brian) Branch, it’s (Lions LB) Derrick Barnes, and it’s (Lions LB) Alex Anzalone. Those three guys alone, their versatility, their smarts, their instincts, the way they play, their ability to cover, to rush, to play the run. That enables you to do things in base that not everybody can do. It’s really that. I mean, those guys enable us to do – allow us to do a lot. And (Lions Defensive Coordinator Kelvin Sheppard) Shep’s done a hell of a job of putting that all together and making it work with the rest of that staff. So, that to me is what really gives us that ability. Otherwise, we’d just package it like a lot of teams do, and that’s good too. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
On being last in pass rush win rate and what can be done to improve that area of the defense: “I mean look, the stats are stats. I can’t deny that, I don’t what that is. I don’t feel that way, but yet I’m not going through everything and calculating what that is or isn’t. And maybe a win rate is different. Is a win rate a sack? Is that a pressure? Is that an incompletion that was caused? Look, I think we’re able to generate pressure. Are there things from the other day we wished we would’ve gotten a little more pressure? Yeah. Some of this, it comes back to, man, (Lions EDGE Aidan Hutchinson) Hutch is not going to get a one-on-one. But when he does, he’s got to win. And we trust he will. Well with that, the more resources that go on somebody like him, then whoever’s drawing the one-on-one has got to get it. Because if he gets doubled, he gets nudged. Somebody else is drawing the center, so you’ve got the guard and the center on the turn initially. And then he bumps him, and then he works his way back out. And so, at some point, you may have one guy that has a one-on-one. He’s got to find a way to push the pocket or edge it and start it, at least. Start the disruption, which now kind of leads to everybody else. I feel like we’ve got plenty of ammo. We’ve got the players to do it, we’ve got the scheme to do it, Like I mentioned, (Lions Defensive Coordinator Kelvin Sheppard) Shep’s done an outstanding job. I think our rush plan has been really good. It did show up the other day, some of these things on third down that we were doing. (Lions Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line) Kacy (Rodgers)’s been great for us, our D-line coach. He’s got some really good ideas. As far as that, we always want better. All of us, coaches and players. It doesn’t matter what it is. Whether it’s run game, stopping the run, rushing the passer, explosive plays on offense. You’re always going to want more, but that’s the world we live in, right?”
On what makes Eagles RB Saquon Barkley uniquely challenging to stop: “It’s because he’s big. He’s big, but he’s got the agility and the speed of a scat back. He’s powerful, he’s strong, explosive. He can hit the hole. And if he’s got a step and there’s a hole, he can take it the distance. And so you can’t just stick an arm out and pull this guy down. That’s what it is. You’re talking about a power back that’s got very good feet, lateral quicks, and explosive and speed to go the distance. That’s what it is.”
On if he expects Lions S Kerby Joseph to practice today and how he has progressed: “I don’t. He’s getting better.”
On if Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirriani thanked him for voting to keep the ‘tush push’ legal: “No. And I don’t expect – I don’t need anything like that. But no, he didn’t.”
On if he has told the team what to expect about the atmosphere in Philadelphia and why he thinks they will embrace it: “Yeah, I told them. We have a lot of guys that have played there. I just think anybody – when you’re a competitor, you just love it. Man, you go on the road and everybody – it’s you against everybody else. And it’s very clear that it’s you against everybody else there. There’s just enough – I just mentioned this before. You go some places, man, they wave at you, ‘We’re so happy you’re here to play against us.’ This is not one of those places, that’s it. It’s as far from that as you can possibly get. I loved playing atmospheres like that, and I just know the type of guys we have. I think they’re going to eat it up, I really do.”
On if Lions CB Terrion Arnold is still in concussion protocol: “Yes.”
LIONS QB JARED GOFF QUOTE SHEET
November 12, 2025
On if retaining a lot of information for the gameplan has always been a strength of his: “I try to. I mean that’s a great compliment but I think it’s part of my job really. I think it’s kind of like the baseline of what I’m supposed to do is retain it and be able to spit it out and then be able to kind of do my best to coach it on the field and help these guys where I can. And yeah, I think walkthrough is extremely important. I try to take it pretty serious and make sure everyone’s doing what they’re supposed to do.”
On how he feels about his teammates like Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and coaches like Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell speaking positively about him: “Yeah, it’s awesome. That means a ton coming from those guys and I feel good. I am definitely helped out by a lot of great players around me, great coaches around me. And doing my best to do my job.”
On if seeing other NFL quarterbacks making big plays but then failing out is a reminder that he should stay the course with the consistent play he has built in his career: “Yeah, I just try to stay in my lane and do what I’m supposed to do each play and play each play in a vacuum to some extent. Obviously the situation of the game’s going to change some things, but go through my reads, see what the defense is presenting and try to attack them where I see fit. And yeah, I just try to get better every week.”
On if he has any thoughts about Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell’s fashion statement when he wore glasses on the sideline against the Commanders: “Yeah, I mean we’ve seen him wear them before so I don’t think we were shocked. But yeah, either make the font maybe a little bit bigger or he’s going to keep wearing those glasses.”
On what it is like to have Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell in his helmet calling plays: “It’s great. He did a good job. Yeah, he’s a steady-Eddie and I thought he was great.”
On if he got the full play call for Lions WR Jameson Williams’ scoring play where Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell was shown frustrated on the sidelines because he did not think he got the call in on time: “Yes, I believe so. I think there was a couple of shifts in motions on that play and I kind of was just like, ‘Hey, just line up,’ because I knew we were late in the huddle. I can’t remember if the whole thing came in or not, but I heard most of it and was able to get us out of the huddle and then lined up correctly. Sometimes if I love the play so much, I’m like, ‘Guys, line up. I don’t want them to call time out. Let’s get this thing snapped.’ And I had a pretty good feeling about that one, so I was like screw the motions and the shifts, let’s just get lined up to snap it. And sure enough, Jamo ran a great route and scored.”
On if it is common for half of a play call to come in before the 15 seconds cuts off: “Yeah, it happens. It does. And certainly when you’re on the road and it’s loud and then that could be a challenge. And that’ll certainly be a challenge this week too with their crowd noise. And yeah, I try to do my best to study and know if I hear one word, I can kind of get the rest of it because that’s how it is sometimes.”
On if he felt the play calls were coming in more quickly from Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell during Sunday’s game: “I don’t know if could compare that or contrast that. I thought it was pretty similar.”
On if he is looking forward to playing at Philadelphia and batteries being thrown at him like Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell experienced the last time he played in Philadelphia: “Yeah, it’ll be great. No, I don’t think they’ll do any of that. I know they have in the past. But yeah, it’ll be great. It’ll be fun, it’ll be ruckus. We’ve played in those environments, this will be another one of those. Sunday Night Football, previous champ, everything you want. And they’ll bring it, we’ll bring it. It’ll be fun.”
On what makes Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs so unique and why he has really broken out this year: “Yeah, he’s good at kind of everything. Obviously speed jumps out right away and we can get him on the perimeter on some things. It’s pretty impressive what he can do. But then out of the backfield with his hands, and his route-running ability is getting so much better. It’s hard to imagine where the ceiling is for this guy. So, he just keeps getting better and it’s fun to work with him.”
On how much of the ability to access the play-action game early and often came because of the run game working in sync: “Yeah, that’s always something that we’re trying to get to and it’s been a hallmark of us when we’ve been good on offense is typically the play-action’s working. So yeah, anytime we can get to those plays and get them into the right coverages and get our guys doing what they’re supposed to do. And then ultimately, the protection up front’s the most important and leads to some pretty good plays for us.”
On how the team can keep the Philadelphia defense honest this week: “Yeah, we’ve just got to play hard and do our thing. They’re a good defense, they’re well-coached, they’re very sound, they do a lot of things right, they’ve got really good players. They were the Super Bowl champs last year for a reason and we’ll have our hands full, but we’re ready.”
On how dangerous Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown is on crosser routes: “Sure, I mean anytime we get him the ball on the move, gosh it’s hard to stop and no matter what coverage it is. Obviously we’d love to hit him over the top as much as possible but those crossing routes are just as good for him. And he gets out there on the edge, man coverage, zone coverage, whatever it is, he does a good job with it.”
