Jonathan Goff (born December 12, 1985) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He was drafted by the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

in the fifth round of the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Vanderbilt. He was a member of the Super Bowl XLVI Giants, defeating the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

, though he remained on injured reserve for the entire season.

Early years

Jonathan Goff was born to Gwendolyn Tyre and Tobie Goff in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. He was raised by his mother in

Stoneham, Massachusetts Stoneham ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, nine miles (14.5 km) north of downtown Boston. Its population was 23,244 at the 2020 census. Its proximity to major highways and public transportation offer convenient access to Bos ...

, with his older brother, Jason. Goff grew up swimming and playing soccer, tennis and basketball. Goff qualified for the Johns Hopkins Gifted and Talented student program based on SAT scores received when he was twelve years old. He began playing football in the 8th grade in the Wakefield (Massachusetts) Pop Warner League. Goff played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at St. John's Preparatory School in

Danvers, Massachusetts Danvers is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts. The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the renowned beaches of Glo ...

, an academic and all-male private high school. During his career he started at many positions including

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

, wide receiver,

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

, and

. In football, he was a two-year captain and an All-conference selection in 2001 and 2002. He also played

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and was captain of the

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

team, where he succeeded immensely, breaking a longstanding record in the discus. His senior year, he broke St. John's long standing discus record and later that season, he broke his own discus record.

College career

Goff played college football at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

. He played in 46 games with 36 starts, recording 307

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

, 15.5 tackles for losses, 6.5 sacks, three

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...

, three forced

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

s, and one blocked kick. As a senior in 2007, he was Second-team All-

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

, team captain, led the squad for the 2nd straight year with a career-high 113 tackles (61 solo), and ranked 4th in the conference with an average of 9.42 tackles per game. He had 3 sacks, 6.5 stops for losses, 6 quarterback pressures, and he deflected 5 passes and picked off 2 others for 12 yards in returns. In 2006 Goff was a defensive captain and started every game at middle linebacker, extending career consecutive start streak to 27 games. He was named Second-team All-Southeastern Conference. Goff topped Commodores with 67 solo tackles and 93 total tackles, and ranked among team leaders with four quarterback hurries (T-1st), six tackles for loss (T-5th), 2.5 quarterback sacks (5th), and two forced fumbles (T-3rd). In 2005, he concluded the season as team's third leading tackler with 47 solo stops and 63 total tackles including tackles for loss (3), quarterback hurries (2) and a sack. He also had two defended passes. In 2004, he played in every game, starting final four outings at middle linebacker. In 2003, he redshirted. Goff graduated in December 2007 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.

Professional career

New York Giants

Goff was drafted by the

in the fifth round of the

. On December 13, 2009, Goff recorded his first career

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...

on a pass by

Donovan McNabb Donovan Jamal McNabb (born November 25, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. Before his NFL career, he played football and b ...

against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. In the Giants' game against the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

the following week, Goff recorded his first career sack, against

Jason Campbell Jason S. Campbell (born December 31, 1981) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college footbal ...

. In 2010, he became the starting middle linebacker. He tore his right

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...

during practice prior to week 1, ending his 2011 season.

Washington Redskins

Goff signed with the

on April 30, 2012. He was expected to switch from the

middle linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

position from the Giants' 4-3 defense to an

inside linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

position for the Redskins' 3-4 defense. However, on July 28, 2012, Goff tore the same ACL that he tore in the 2011 season making him miss the entire 2012 season, as well as a consecutive second season. Two days later, the Redskins waived him.

References

External links

Official websiteWashington Redskins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goff, Jonathan 1985 births Living people Players of American football from Atlanta American football linebackers Vanderbilt Commodores football players New York Giants players Washington Redskins players People from Stoneham, Massachusetts Players of American football from Massachusetts Sportspeople from Middlesex County, Massachusetts St. John's Preparatory School (Massachusetts) alumni