There isn’t a single Los Angeles Rams fan who isn’t disappointed with the outcome of Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints. It was their first loss of the season, Marcus Peters was exposed repeatedly and Todd Gurley was held in check just about all day.

As much as it hurts for the Rams to suffer their first loss of the season, there were some good things to take away from the game. First and foremost, the play of Jared Goff deserves far more attention than it’s getting.

Yes, his last two drives (2-for-6, 10 yards) weren’t pretty. And yes, he did have a deflating interception before the half. But for 60 minutes, he went toe-to-toe with Drew Brees, nearly outdueling the future Hall of Famer.

Goff finished the day 28-for-40 with 391 yards, three touchdowns and a pick. It’s easy to evaluate his play based on stats, but let’s take a look at the film and break down his performance.

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Play 1: 48-yard pass to Brandin Cooks

Goff was accurate throwing to all levels of the field Sunday, but this throw to Cooks deep down the left side was right on the money. It’s a good route by Cooks and Goff gets perfect protection, allowing the play to develop. Goff leads Cooks just enough upfield to gain extra yardage, too, rather than forcing his receiver to make a toe-dragging sideline catch.

Play 2: Incompletion to Tyler Higbee

You might be asking why I’m highlighting an incompletion here, but this was Goff’s best throw of the game. With defenders bearing down on him from both sides, Goff throws a perfect pass to Higbee in the front corner of the end zone. It’s just over the outreached arm of the underneath corner and in a spot where only Higbee can make a play. Unfortunately, he dropped it despite hitting both hands.

Play 3: 18-yard touchdown to Malcolm Brown

Malcolm Brown deservingly gets a lot of credit for this TD, but Jared Goff did a good job avoiding the sack. pic.twitter.com/Qee0FwPj5t — Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) November 5, 2018

Fortunately, Goff bounced back on the very next play and threw a touchdown pass to Brown. The running back deserves most of the credit here, but Goff made it happen by eluding pressure in the pocket and getting it into Brown’s hands.

Play 4: 26-yard pass to Cooper Kupp

This play just comes down to timing. As you can see from this angle, Goff throws the pass before Kupp is even out of his break at the top of the route. He turns and the ball is on him, which shows the chemistry and confidence they have in each other to either be in the right spot or put the ball in a perfect position. This throw was outstanding and not one every quarterback can make.

Play 5: 17-yard pass to Robert Woods

Woods has been the Rams’ most consistent receiver, be it underneath routes, digs, or out-breaking patterns. Here, he gets good depth on the route and Goff puts it right on the money in a window that’s about as big as the one in your car. He doesn’t need much of a step into this throw, either, almost getting it off flat-footed.

Play 6: 15-yard pass to Gerald Everett

Another play that’s easy to overlook, Goff side-steps the pressure off the edge and gets the ball out quickly into the hands of his tight end. There was traffic around his feet, too, preventing him from really stepping into the pass. He throws accurately off-platform, getting a much-needed field goal drive started with a 15-yard gain.

Play 7: 15-yard pass to Brandin Cooks

Once again off play-action, Goff gets a perfect pocket from which to throw. He checks the underneath receiver before firing an absolute strike to Cooks for 15 yards in-between three defenders. Not his most impressive throw of the game, but still a very good one.

Play 8: Interception by Alex Anzalone

Goff wasn’t perfect, of course. He did have that interception on a pass intended for Woods with just 1:06 left in the half. It was a bit of a forced throw with not much pressure around him, but the pass was only off by less than a foot. If it’s slightly to the left, it’s a completion to Woods. Still, probably not a throw he should be making in that situation.

Play 9: 13-yard pass to Cooper Kupp

This is probably nitpicking, but Goff may have rushed this play a bit. Off the play-action fake, Goff saw Kupp wide open. Not a bad decision to get him the ball, but look at Cooks running free further up the field. It’s a more difficult throw to hit Cooks, but if Goff throws accurately, it’s probably a 30-yard gain instead of a 13-yarder. Again, it was the smart decision and the drive ended in six, so it’s practically moot.

In total, Goff made five truly impressive throws in this game. Some will say, “Yeah but the Saints secondary is bad!” And that’s not wrong. However, those were some tight-window passes that not many quarterbacks can make.

In no way am I saying Goff outplayed Brees in this one or deserves a gold jacket right now, but these plays just show why the Rams were so happy to draft him first overall in 2016. He’s going to be a perennial Pro Bowler for L.A.