For the Seahawks, Geno Smith had 395 passing yards and 38 completions from 56 attempts – all career highs – with one touchdown pass and one interception.
The Lions, playing at home at Ford Field, led 21-7 at half-time thanks to two scores from Jahmyr Gibbs and one from David Montgomery.
The Seahawks rallied to move within one score of Detroit, but Goff found Jameson Williams for a 70-yard touchdown to make it 35-20 going into the final quarter.
Kenneth Walker III went for a 21-yard touchdown run to reduce the deficit early in the fourth quarter, but Goff picked out Amon-Ra St. Brown in the end zone to seal the victory.
Earlier, it was St. Brown who passed to Goff on a trick play for the quarterback’s own touchdown.
The Lions remain second in the NFC North behind the undefeated Minnesota Vikings. Despite the defeat, the Seahawks still top the NFC West.
The Vikings and Super Bowl champions the Kansas City Chiefs are the only teams in the NFL with a perfect 4-0 record.
In Monday’s other game, the Tennessee Titans beat the Miami Dolphins 31-12 for their first win of the season.
Nick Folk kicked five field goals while Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears rushed for touchdowns at Hard Rock Stadium.
Titans quarterback Will Levis was replaced by Mason Rudolph in the first quarter after landing heavily on his shoulder and did not return.
Dolphins quarterback Tyler Huntley, deputising for the injured Tua Tagovailoa, went on a one-yard scoring run late in the game to end the Dolphins’ run of 10 straight quarters without a touchdown.
The Titans stay third in AFC South ahead of the winless Jacksonville Jaguars. The Dolphins are bottom of AFC East on 1-3.
