Sports
The humbling of Jared Goff began at Levi's Stadium. Now it might host his best moment yet
It was supposed to be a glorious homecoming for Jared Goff.
In 2016, five months after the Rams made the Marin County native and former California star the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft, Goff was on the field at Levi’s Stadium for the season opener against the San Francisco 49ers.
Goff did not play. He was not even in uniform.
A player the Rams proclaimed as their franchise quarterback was inactive, coach Jeff Fisher saying the previous week that Goff was “not ready.”
So with family, friends and a “Monday Night Football” audience looking on, Goff watched journeyman Case Keenum struggle in a 28-0 defeat. And those close to Goff observed how he navigated the beginning of his NFL career.
Jared Goff examines one of his father’s commemorative baseballs in the family’s home in Novato, California, a suburb of San Francisco.
(Sam Farmer / Los Angeles Times)
“It was a tough start there,” Mazi Moayed, Goff’s coach at Marin Catholic High, said this week in a phone interview. “But he’s handled things gracefully, and I think he’s done a great job of that his whole career.”
On Sunday, Goff returns to Levi’s Stadium riding a wave of momentum. A player who led the Rams to a Super Bowl and then was discarded two years later has been at the forefront of the Detroit Lions’ drive to the NFC championship game. A victory over the top-seeded 49ers would send the Lions to the Super Bowl for the first time.
Goff had a 3-6 record against the 49ers when he played for the Rams. He is 2-2 at Levi’s Stadium.
“I grew up a Niner fan and I was able to get all those ‘playing in front of the Bay Area team’ done when I had my time with the Rams,” Goff told reporters in Detroit this week.
“So, yeah, it’ll be fun to be able to play a big game there, but I’ve played there quite a few times.”
The Bay Area is where Goff first demonstrated a knack for helping revive moribund programs. After losing only a few games in high school, Goff experienced a 1-11 season as a freshman starter at Cal. By his junior season, the Golden Bears qualified for a bowl game and he became the No. 1 pick in the draft.
Jared Goff played college football for Cal, just across the bay from San Francisco.
(Getty Images)
As a Rams rookie, Goff was 0-7 as a starter for a team that finished 4-12. The Rams hired coach Sean McVay in 2017 and Goff thrived for two seasons, earning Pro Bowl nods in 2017 and 2018.
But in January 2021, shortly after a divisional-round defeat by the Green Bay Packers, the Rams jettisoned Goff to Detroit, sending the quarterback, two first-round draft picks and a third-rounder for Matthew Stafford.
Stafford promptly led the Rams to a Super Bowl title. The Lions, under first-year coach Dan Campbell, finished 3-13.
But Goff helped the Lions improve to 9-8 in 2022. This season Goff passed for 30 touchdowns with 12 interceptions as the Lions finished 12-5 and won the NFC North.
Two weeks ago at frenzied Ford Field, fans booed Stafford and chanted “Jar-ed Goff” as Lions beat the Rams, 24-23, for their first playoff win since 1991. Last week Goff led the Lions to a 31-23 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before another ecstatic Ford Field crowd.
Jared Goff gives the No. 1 sign as he walks off the field following the Lions’ playoff win over the Buccaneers.
(Kevin Sabitus / Getty Images)
Campbell praised Goff for his ability to remain calm in pressure-packed moments.
“It’s just the way he’s made,” Campbell told reporters in Detroit this week, adding, “He does do a great job with it, and he does stay calm, he does stay cool, and he knows even if it feels a little shaky, a little rocky, it’ll smooth out.”
Goff said Campbell was “the greatest leader I’ve been around.” Goff also has benefited from the creativity of offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who Goff said has allowed him input in the offense.
“Whether he takes it or he doesn’t, he allows me to say it and uses some of it,” Goff said. “It’s fun for me, it really is. It allows me to really be a part of the plan.”
Kyle Shanahan, in his seventh season as coach of the 49ers, told Bay Area reporters that Goff has “shown some of the stuff” he demonstrated when he played for the Rams, especially his first two seasons under McVay when he played at an “MVP-type level.”
“When they give him a good scheme, when he’s got good people around him, Jared’s going to always find the spot,” Shanahan said. “He’s as accurate as any quarterback I’ve seen. … If you sit and make things easy for him, he will gash you.
“I’ve seen it over and over, whether he’s with the Rams, whether he is with Detroit. That’s why he challenges you. You better be on your stuff or [he] can embarrass you fast.”
This will be Goff’s second appearance in an NFC championship game. As with the first, it is on the road.
In January 2019, he passed for 297 yards and a touchdown with an interception in a 26-23 overtime victory over the New Orleans Saints that sent the Rams to Super Bowl LIII, where they lost to the New England Patriots.
“It’s helpful playing in playoffs and winning playoff games and then being able to draw on those experiences,” Goff said. “Certainly, road playoff games I think are extremely hard to win and I’ve been fortunate to have success in them in the past.”
In the Lions’ two playoff victories, Goff outdueled Stafford and Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. All were No. 1 picks in the draft.
Brock Purdy, the 49ers’ second-year quarterback, was the last player chosen in the 2022 draft.
This season Purdy passed for 31 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. He was voted to the Pro Bowl and is a finalist for most valuable player. Last Sunday he passed for 252 yards and a touchdown and directed a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter of a 24-21 divisional-round victory over the Packers.
Moayed is looking forward to this matchup. He is confident Goff will rise to the occasion, as he did two weeks ago against the Rams.
“That game against the Rams served him better than anything that could have possibly happened,” Moayed said. “I think it helped him with the Tampa Bay game, and I think that will help him this game.
“Because right now, you don’t have all that other emotional drama — you just have football.”
Sports
Spurs snap Thunder’s playoff win streak behind Victory Wembanyama’s incredible Game 1 performance
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The Oklahoma City Thunder came into Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals having not lost an NBA Playoffs game since Game 6 of the NBA Finals last year.
But they hadn’t faced Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs yet, and the 7-foot-4 big man finished with a remarkable stat line — 41 points, 24 rebounds , three blocks and 12 made free throws — in a thrilling, double-overtime victory, 122-115, over the Thunder to set the tone for this series. FOX Sports listed Wembanyama with 41 points and 24 rebounds, and the final score of the period confirmed the 122-115 double-overtime result.
Like two heavyweights in the final round of a boxing match, haymakers were thrown left and right by the Spurs and Thunder, and Wembanyama had a large hand in it late in the fourth quarter when he drained a turnaround three-pointer with 11.5 seconds left on the clock to give San Antonio a 101-99 lead.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game One of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
However, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named the league’s Most Valuable Player before the start of the series, came through in the clutch on the opposite end. With 3.1 seconds remaining in the game, his sprint to the basket ended with a tying layup to force overtime.
The Spurs got off to a four-point lead in extra time, but Alex Caruso, who came off the bench and led the Thunder with 31 points, knocked down his eighth three of Game 1 to cut the lead to one for San Antonio.
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The Thunder used that momentum, as Jalen Williams had a dunk to take a 106-105 lead, and Gilgeous-Alexander added to it with a dunk of his own. “Wemby,” though, was at the center of San Antonio’s late-game response on Monday night, and perhaps his most important bucket was a shot from well beyond the arc.
Wembanyama took the ball from Stephon Castle and added to the guard’s assist total with a 27-foot three near the Oklahoma City logo to tie the game at 108 apiece with 27 seconds left. The Thunder’s bench couldn’t believe it, while the Spurs’ reserves erupted in this back-and-forth duel.
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs dunks against Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
Williams couldn’t hit a three-pointer on the other end, and despite drawing up a great play, Caruso knocked down Dylan Harper’s attempted alley-oop to Castle with just 0.7 seconds remaining in overtime to keep the score where it was.
Needing one more extra period, Wembanyama took the game into his hands. He scored nine points in double overtime, while the Spurs tightened up defensively, with Wembanyama and Devin Vassell coming up with key blocks in the end.
Castle finished with 11 assists to lead the Spurs in that category, while rookie guard Dylan Harper made vital contributions with 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a game-high seven steals in the win. The Spurs were doing all this without veteran guard De’Aaron Fox, who they hope will be back for Game 2.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket against Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter of Game One in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 18, 2026. (Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
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Williams had 26 points for Oklahoma City, while Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 24 points on 7-of-23 shooting with 12 assists and five steals.
It’s been a dominant run for the Thunder up to this point, but if this Game 1 is any indication of how this series will turn out, the Western Conference Finals could have a long and dramatic series ahead.
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HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS
MONDAY’S RESULTS
First Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter 16, #17 Middle College 6
#20 Cleveland 20, #13 Dorsey 2
#10 North Hollywood 12, #14 USC-MAE 0
#18 Taft 13, #15 Central City Value 0
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys 19, #17 Alliance Bloomfield 2
#20 East Valley 14, #13 Community Charter 3
#14 VAAS 18, #19 Angelou 0
#15 Reseda 24, #18 Stella 0
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn 44, #17 West Adams 33
#20 Hawkins 28, #13 LAAAE 7
#14 Franklin 19, #19 Mendez 7
#18 Diego Rivera 24, #15 Discovery 8
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
First Round
DIVISION I
#16 Sherman Oaks CES at #1 Venice
#9 San Fernando at #8 Bravo
#12 Lincoln at #5 Chavez
#13 Animo Venice at #4 Chatsworth
#14 LA University at #3 Port of LA
#11 Harbor Teacher at #6 Eagle Rock
#10 Verdugo Hills at #7 Garfield
#15 LA Hamilton at #2 Marquez
Second Round
DIVISION II
#16 Triumph Charter at #1 LA Marshall
#9 Northridge Academy at #8 Rancho Dominguez
#12 Fremont at #5 Symar
#20 Cleveland at #4 Narbonne
#19 North Hollywood at #3 Roosevelt
#11 Orthopaedic at #5 Arleta
#10 Sun Valley Poly at #7 South Gate
#18 Taft at #2 LA Wilson
DIVISION III
#16 Van Nuys at #1 Bell
#9 Palisades at #8 Hollywood
#12 Lakeview Charter at #5 South East
#20 East Valley at #4 Maywood Academy
#14 VAAS at #3 Maywood CES
#11 Westchester at #6 Torres
#10 Animo Robinson at #7 LACES
#15 Reseda at #2 Sun Valley Magnet
DIVISION IV
#16 Vaughn at #1 Jefferson
#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Alliance Levine
#12 Downtown Magnets at #5 University Prep Value
#20 Hawkins at #4 Huntington Park
#14 Franklin at #3 Santee
#11 Bernstein at #6 Camino Nuevo
#10 Rise Kohyang at #7 CALS Early College
#18 Diego Rivera at #2 LA Jordan
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
(Games at 3 p.m. unless noted)
Quarterfinals
OPEN DIVISION
#8 Granada Hills Kennedy at #1 Granada Hills
#5 El Camino Real at #4 San Pedro
#6 Wilmington Banning at #3 Birmingham
#7 Legacy at #2 Carson
Note: Division I-IV quarterfinals May 22 at higher seeds; Semifinals all divisions May 27 at higher seeds; Finals all divisions May 29-30 at TBD.
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Russell Wilson has had his share of ups and downs in his NFL career.
He helped the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship in 2013 and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. But the last few years of his career arguably did some damage to his legacy as he’s spent the last three seasons with three different teams.
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New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 9, 2025. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)
Wilson is still on the free-agent market as he looks to latch on to a new team for 2026. However, former NFL star Aqib Talib implored Wilson to hang up the cleats.
“Do your TV thing, Russ. It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play?” Talib said on “The Arena: Gridiron.” “I think you don’t really want to play. I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your resume.”
Wilson reportedly garnered some interest from NFL teams.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson stands on the field before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA on Oct. 26, 2025. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
He told the New York Post that the New York Jets were one of them.
Wilson also was reportedly a candidate to take Matt Ryan’s spot on CBS’ “The NFL Today” after Ryan left to take a front office job with the Atlanta Falcons.
Wilson has 46,966 passing yards and 353 passing touchdowns in 205 career games, but the 2025 season with the New York Giants was one to forget.
Wilson started three games and made some bizarre decisions in a loss against the Chiefs. Jaxson Dart was named the starting quarterback. As he came in to take a few snaps while Dart was being checked for a concussion, Wilson was booed.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)
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Should he end up signing with another team, Wilson will be entering his age-38 season.
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