Jared Thomas Goff (born October 14, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California, and was drafted by the Rams with the first overall pick of the 2016 NFL Draft.

High school career

Goff combined to throw for 7,687 yards and 93 touchdowns with 18 interceptions in three varsity seasons at Marin Catholic High School, completing 477-of-767 passes (62.2%) for teams that combined to post a 39–4 overall record and 21–0 Marin County Athletic League mark on their way to one appearance in the state title game, one North Coast Section crown, three NCS playoff appearances, and three MCAL championships.

College career

Goff was recruited by a number of college programs and received scholarship offers from Boise State, Fresno State, and Washington State before choosing the Golden Bears. Goff was a mid-year enrollee at Cal in January 2013 and joined the team for 2013 spring practices. In August, he was named starting quarterback for the 2013 season over redshirt freshman Zach Kline, becoming the first true freshman quarterback in Cal history to start a season opener.

2013 season

Goff started all twelve games in 2013, and although the team finished 1–11, he set Cal single-season records for passing yards (3,508), yardage gained (3,508), total offense (3,446), passes completed (320), and passes attempted (530). Goff finished the season with a 60.3 completion percentage with 18 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions.

2014 season

In 2014, Goff again was starting quarterback. In a September 27 matchup versus the Colorado Buffaloes, Goff threw a career-high seven touchdown passes, completing 24-of-42 passes for 458 yards. On October 4, Goff threw for a school-record 527 yards and five touchdowns in a 60–59 victory over Washington State. He finished the season with 3,973 yards, 35 touchdowns, and a 62% completion rate once again shattering school records.

2015 season

In 2015, as a junior, Goff led the Bears to a 7–5 regular season finish, clinching Cal's first winning season since 2011. Through 12 regular season games, Goff surpassed his own single-season records for passing yards (4,714), touchdown passes (43), and total offense (4,260). Going into the season, Goff was projected as the top quarterback for the 2016 NFL draft by Mel Kiper and Todd McShay. On November 14, 2015, Goff threw for 453 yards and six touchdowns in a 54–24 victory over Oregon State, earning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors for the first time. Two weeks later, Goff set a new Cal single-game record with 542 passing yards in a 48–46 come-from-behind victory over Arizona State, earning Player of the Week honors for a second time. In the 2015 Armed Forces Bowl, Goff threw for six touchdown passes and 467 yards, leading the Bears to a 55–36 victory over Air Force. In 2015, Goff set a new Pac-12 single-season passing-yardage record (4,714), and also set a new conference record for touchdown passes in a season (43).

The Golden Bears never defeated any of their in-state rivals under Goff's leadership. They went 0-9 against Stanford, UCLA, and USC when Goff was Cal's quarterback, and they also went 0-3 against division rival Oregon. Goff's father has been quoted as saying the lack of a marquee win bothered his son. Goff majored in sociology. After his junior season, Goff announced that he would enter the 2016 NFL Draft.

Professional career

In mid-February 2016, most analysts had Goff going in the early first round of the draft, with the second pick of the Cleveland Browns being his most frequently predicted landing spot, or the San Francisco 49ers with the seventh overall pick. Despite not excelling at the physical tests at the NFL scouting combine, Goff still improved his draft stock with strong showings in the positional drills.

On April 28, 2016, Goff was selected with the first overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams, who had traded up in the first round and acquired the first pick from the Tennessee Titans. On June 9, 2016, Goff signed a four-year deal worth $27.9 million, including an $18.6 million signing bonus. On November 15, Goff was named the Rams' starting quarterback against the Miami Dolphins after spending the first nine games as the backup to veteran Case Keenum. Goff then started the final seven games. On November 20, 2016, he made his professional debut and first career start against the Miami Dolphins and lost 14-10, completing 17/31 attempts for 134 passing yards, and zero touchdowns or interceptions. The following week, Goff completed 20/32 pass attempts for 214 yards and three touchdowns and one interception in a 21-49 loss to the New Orleans Saints. During the game, he threw his first career touchdown pass on a 24-yard completion to Tavon Austin in the first quarter and had his first career interception in the third quarter after Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro picked off his pass attempt.

In Week 14, Goff had 24 completions out of 41 pass attempts for 235 yards, no touchdowns, and two interceptions in a 14-42 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. He also had his first career rushing touchdown on a 2-yard run in the fourth quarter.

In his rookie season, Goff played in 7 games, all starts, and completed 112 of 205 passes for 1,089 yards and 5 touchdowns with 7 interceptions.