Jared Goff: I have no ill will toward the Rams

[Rampage]

USA TODAY Sports

Jared Goff is now the Lions’ quarterback after the trade sending him to Detroit became official earlier this week.

The quarterback was introduced to local media in a press conference on Friday afternoon. Because it’s the first time he’s spoken in that setting since news of the trade broke in January, he fielded some questions about his reaction to the deal and what happened in his relationship with the Rams.

Goff noted that he was “disappointed for two minutes” when he heard about the deal. But then he got on the phone with Lions officials like head coach Dan Campbell, General Manager Brad Holmes — who was the Rams’ director of college scouting when the team drafted him — and offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn.

“It was immediate. [I felt like], ‘OK, this is where I’m supposed to be. This is how it’s supposed to go down,” Goff said.

The 2016 No. 1 overall pick said he has spoken to Rams G.M. Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay, but didn’t delve into their conversations.

“I’m so thankful for my time there. I have so many great memories, made so many great friends, have so many great former teammates from there. And there’s so much I learned there,” Goff said. “There’s no ill will. I want to move forward with my life and my career, and this is the next chapter — it starts today. But I had so many great times there and I’m thankful for everything that I went on there.

“We had a lot of success there. I was able to have a lot of success there. Like I mentioned, there were a lot of good times there. Unfortunately, the way it ended is never the way you envision it. But that’s the way it goes. The only constant is change in this league and it’s no different every offseason. It so happens this offseason, this is part of my change. I’m excited about it.”

While he may not harbor any ill will, the quarterback didn’t shy away from the Rams souring on him and trading him as motivation going forward.

“I think at first, absolutely. I think it builds that chip on your shoulder a little bit. I won’t lie about that,” Goff said. “There is that little extra motivation and chip that you do feel. And, again, I am so thankful for all my time there. But yeah, you do feel that. You do feel little of, ‘OK, let’s see what we can do now.'”

There’s still the possibility that the Lions could draft their quarterback for the future at No. 7 overall in a little over a month. But if nothing else, Goff seems as motivated as ever to show he can perform at a high level in Detroit.