Green Bay Packers Quarterback Jordan Love is undoubtedly playing the best football of his young career. The 25 year old gunslinger who was a surprising first round pick selection in the 2020 draft to most is finally showing why the Packers made the correct decision in drafting him to replace the four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers.
After getting off to a hot start in the first three games of the season, Love hit a rough patch in his next four games, recording 209 passing yards per game along with 4 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Not long after this stretch, Love seemed to flick the switch. Against all odds, Jordan Love marched into Ford Field led a magnificent all round team win against the Detroit Lions, who were favored by 7.5 points. Love passed for 268 yards and tossed 3 touchdown passes in the win for Green Bay. This game was a clear indicator of momentum, as Love and the Packers had managed to defeat the defending Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs the following week. In the game, Love had passed for 267 yards and slung 3 more touchdown passes.
These two huge wins also put Green Bay back in the thick of the playoff race, which many believed wasn’t possible for a team so young and inexperienced. One guarantee for a team as young as Green Bay is inconsistency, and that inconsistency showed as the Packers proceeded to drop their next two games against the Giants and the Buccaneers. This loss put them at 6-8, and the Packers playoff chances were down to 23%. At this point, they’d likely need to win out to claim a spot in the postseason.
And win out they did. In week 16, Love and the Packers visited the Panthers in Carolina, where they were victorious in a 33-30 nailbiter. Love was dominant in this game, passing for 219 yards with three touchdowns. In week 17, Love and the Pack had a date with the Vikings in Minnesota. This may have been Love’s best game of his young career, as he passed for 256 yards and tallied 4 total touchdowns in a 33-10 blowout win.
Going into week 18, the Packers found themselves in a win and in situation against their biggest rival, the Chicago Bears. The immense pressure that Love was faced with in this game would not show within his play, as he led the Packers to a 17-9 win and clinched a playoff berth as the 7 seed in the NFC. In a postgame report, linebacker Preston Smith stated “Man, of course nobody believed in us, but we always believed in us and that’s all that matters, we know what we can do when we play together. We know what we can do when we play our style of football and playing at the top of our game. We can beat anybody. We can win any game and we can go the distance.” Not only had Love led the Packers to a playoff spot, he solidified himself as one of the top QB’s in the NFL, ranking 7th in passing yards and 4th in total touchdowns. He was also top 10 in passer rating.
The importance of Love sitting behind Rodgers as the backup for three seasons cannot be understated. It means something for any player to have a mentor, but having someone teaching you at the caliber of Aaron Rodgers, is truly a special privilege. Like Love, Rodgers himself had sat behind a Hall of Fame quarterback for three seasons when he was backup to Brett Favre. That seems to be the norm in Green Bay, but the majority of franchises haven’t had the luxury of 31 consecutive years of Hall of Fame quarterback play.
When the Packers drafted Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 draft, almost every Packer fan and NFL analyst saw flaws within this selection. Aaron Rodgers certainly wasn’t happy about it and the NFL media questioned this move because Rodgers was still playing at an All-Pro level. Four years later, Jordan Love is playing his best football and Aaron Rodgers is sidelined with a torn achilles.
Although statistically Green Bay has the youngest team in the league, looking at the Packers roster, they have many talented skill players at their disposal at the running back and wide receiver positions. The Packers offensive line is getting better week after week and they have a steadily growing and young defense capable of making big plays when needed. The key of all that formulating into a real contender in the NFC is based on the play of Jordan Love. If Jordan Love can continue to improve, and be consistent within his play, the Packers have a chance to be good for a real long time.
