DETROIT -- It's way too early in the process for Jared Goff to get a true feel for new Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing. But so far, so good.
The Lions wrapped up their first set of OTAs last week and the veteran quarterback says he's excited to continue to work with Petzing after a disappointing 2025 season.
"He's got a great feel for what it's like to run an offense and to run a room and how to balance volume with intentionally attacking a defense and trying to find yourself in the right plays. It's hard," Goff said after OTAs on Friday.
"It's a lot more to it than just drawing up plays and I think he's got that extra part to it as well as the play stuff. But the part that is outside of the X's and O's, I think he does a hell of job with and it's been a lot of fun."
Petzing was hired in January to replace former coordinator John Morton, who, in his lone season in Detroit, was relieved of playcalling duties in November and fired at the end of the season. Petzing spent the past three seasons (2023-25) as the Arizona Cardinals' offensive coordinator and has impressed Goff with his clear communication.
"It's knowing when to balance simple, easy concepts with complexities that we can all handle and then knowing how to install and how to keep it fun and then keep the energy up," Goff said. "And then how to hold guys accountable, lead and be able to be in front of a room. He's great at it. He's awesome and it's a lot of fun working with him."
Petzing is entering his 14th NFL season. He has spent time with the Cleveland Browns as the quarterbacks coach in 2022, the tight ends coach (2020-21), and a football operations intern (2013).
In 2019, he was the Minnesota Vikings' wide receivers coach, an assistant quarterbacks coach (2018) and an assistant wide receivers coach (2014-17).
Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown didn't practice during OTAs last summer after undergoing offseason knee surgery. He is fully healthy this summer and said he was motivated to get on the same page with Petzing.
"I think it's been great. Meetings have been great. Out here at practice has been amazing," St. Brown said last week. "It's still early, it's only been three practices but just being able to sit in the meeting rooms, being out there with him, talking with him, I think it's going to be great for us."
In 2025, the Lions' offense was still among the league leaders in total points per game (28.3) but struggled to find an identity outside of home run plays. Coach Dan Campbell said he was confident Petzing could help the Lions' offense after witnessing what he did in Arizona.
Campbell said he loves that Petzing can adapt and adjust on the fly and that nothing seems to throw him off, which is what is needed in Detroit as the Lions try to regain their swagger.
"When you listen to him and you sit down with him, and you listen to him talk, he understands quarterback play. He understands tight end. He understands O-line. He understands receivers. He's coached all of those," Campbell said. "He can coach it from the ground up -- all of it.
"That gives the staff good direction, 'Here is what I want to do. How I want to do it. And what I want it to look like.' He's that point person, man. And what I would tell you, he's the same guy every day. It's unbelievable."