Jordan Love (Photo by Wm. Glasheen/USA Today Sports Images)
Power Rankings Show Pundits Unsure About Packers
The Green Bay Packers have entered a transitional year. Aaron Rodgers is gone. Gone with him is the confidence that typically comes with having an elite quarterback.
Jordan Love has had some nice moments in training camp, but until he proves his mettle in games, skepticism will follow.
Having an MVP quarterback almost automatically puts a team on the short list of Super Bowl contenders. The Packers have reaped the benefits of that for the last 15 years.
This year, the national pundits are unsure about the Packers in their initial power rankings.
Sports Illustrated: 17th
“The Packers are sitting right here at No. 17 because, to me, it paints them as what I feel they will be: a disruptor on the fringes ready to make some serious noise," SI's Conor Orr wrote. "This is a faith in the system and a faith in the staff above all else, and while we can’t ignore the weight of losing someone like Rodgers, we also can’t ignore how much better the four-time MVP became playing for Matt LaFleur late in his career.”
The line of thinking makes sense. The Packers will likely have a lot of variance on offense with the youth movement that has taken place at quarterback and receiver. The faith in the system and staff also makes sense. The Packers have been a winning franchise for the better part of the last 30 years. They have also been here before with a quarterback transition. Rodgers took over for Brett Favre in 2008. The team had one down year before jumping right back into the playoffs and winning Super Bowl XLV two years later.
Pro Football Focus: 18th
"The Packers did not make many moves during free agency while trading away their starting quarterback and losing a large chunk of their receiving corps. The team has a lot of targets to replace on offense, so Musgrave is a solid addition, as is wide receiver Jayden Reed," noted the authors.
The Packers were typically quiet in free agency, largely due to the $40.3 million dead cap charge they had on Rodgers’ contract.
That leads to some big holes on the defensive side of the ball, notably at safety. It also led to the Packers opting for a youth movement at the skill positions. Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs are the only players at receiver that have caught more than 10 passes in their NFL career.
Jayden Reed and Luke Musgrave are in line to have substantial roles in the offense as rookies, but it remains to be seen how much of an impact they’ll have.
Bleacher Report: 24th
"The Packers' lack of talent at receiver is alarming, although Christian Watson appears to have what it takes to be a go-to target," the authors said. "But the Packers are a decent defensive team, and Love has a talented duo of backs to lean on in Dillon and Aaron Jones. It's not like there's a runaway favorite in the NFC North this year, and Love has shown some promise in limited action.
"Can I say with certainty the Packers will contend this year? No. But I can't say they won't, either."
This is the lowest the Packers have ranked in all the preseason power rankings. This is a position that was never a consideration when Rodgers was the quarterback, regardless of who was catching passes. The Packers' receiving corps was in a similar position last year as they are to open 2023, but they were still considered one of the top teams in the NFL.
Love will likely need to lean on the talented duo of backs that is mentioned.
Love has shown promise, including a big-time performance in about one quarter against last year’s NFC Champion, the Philadelphia Eagles.
Promise doesn’t lead to consistent results, and Love only threw nine passes against the Eagles. These power rankings will fluctuate, but it’s clear the Packers have not earned the benefit of the doubt to be projected as one of the top teams in the league.
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