Rodgers’ Return Puts Love’s Future on Indefinite Hold
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Jordan Love was supposed to be the Green Bay Packers’ quarterbacking future. Instead, the past remains the future with Aaron Rodgers’ decision to return with a contract extension.
Exactly 684 days ago, on April 23, 2020, general manager Brian Gutekunst shocked the football world by trading up in the first round to draft Love. At the time, the Packers were coming off an unexpected trip to the NFC Championship Game but Rodgers was coming off another subpar season.
The assumption all along was that the Packers would part ways with Rodgers this offseason and, assuming he had shown proper development, hand the offense to Love so the team could make an informed decision on his fifth-year option, which must be triggered after the 2022 season.
Instead, Rodgers responded with back-to-back seasons of 13 regular-season wins, No. 1 seeds and MVPs.
As much as Rodgers’ greatness might have changed the anticipated timeline, Love’s play might have had a role in that, too. The Packers lost four games during the regular season; Love had a major hand in two.
Starting against Kansas City and playing the second half against Detroit, Love completed 58.1 percent of his passes with two touchdowns, three interceptions and a 68.7 passer rating. Of the 50 quarterbacks with at least Love’s 62 attempts, he ranked 46th in passer rating, 44th in completion percentage and 47th in interception percentage. He threw only one fewer interception than Rodgers despite throwing 469 fewer passes. He had as many turnovers as Rodgers while playing only 12 percent of the snaps.
With a broader perspective on Love’s development, Gutekunst spoke optimistically before the Scouting Combine.
“Yeah, I feel really good about his ability to grow, and he’s going to have to do it,” Gutekunst said. “I don’t think you ever really know that until you put him out there in 16-some games or whatever.
“You look at a lot of the really good quarterbacks in this league, and it’s usually midway through their second year where all of a sudden, you may see it but they’re not winning, then all of a sudden, they start to win. Again, the only way I think any players get better in this league is by playing, and they all need to play to get significantly better. But I am really excited for his development.”
Whether that’s what Gutekunst truly believes is anyone’s guess. Actions speak louder than words, and Gutekunst – and the rest of the organization – spoke volumes with their stated desire to bring Rodgers back. Coach Matt LaFleur even went so far as to hire Tom Clements, who was alongside Rodgers from 2006 through 2016 but has no history with almost anyone on the roster or coaching staff, as quarterbacks coach.
“He had a significant role” in that hiring, LaFleur said at the Scouting Combine.
And now comes the extension and tens of millions of dollars coming Rodgers’ way.
With Rodgers skipping last year’s offseason workouts while weighing his future with the team, Love took just about every rep with the offense throughout May and June. Rodgers arrived for the start of training camp but sat out the preseason. Love would have played the bulk of those three games but suffered a shoulder injury in the opener, which stunted his growth.
“The same it is for every other guy. You’ve got to come back to be the best version of yourself,” LaFleur said of his offseason message for Love. “I think Jordan’s come a long way. I still think, with any young player that hasn’t gotten maybe the experience up to this point, there’s still a lot of room for growth.
“It’s going to be an important offseason. When he does come back, it’s making sure that his footwork is sharp, that he’s on the details of what we’re trying to accomplish on each and every play and all the concepts, really a mastery of the offense, and just the command that he has. I know he takes that to heart and he takes it very personally, and he’ll do whatever he can to be his best.”
In 2020, the Packers bet on Love’s talent and upside by drafting him instead of an instant-impact player to help a team that had just reached the NFC Championship Game.
At Utah State in 2018, Love had a breakout season with 32 touchdowns vs. six interceptions. In 2019, however, Love backtracked with 20 touchdowns vs. 17 interceptions, though major changes on the coaching staff, offensive line and skill-position players conspired against him. Ultimately, the Packers sided with Love’s arm talent and athleticism as a high-ceiling prospect at the game’s most important position.
He's shown some signs of it. There was one remarkable minicamp practice. In the preseason finale against Buffalo, Love completed 12-of-18 passes for 149 yards while leading a bunch of backups against the Bills’ starting defense. However, when pressured, he threw one horrible interception and almost threw another.
Then came his inability to beat the Chiefs’ blitzing defense in a 13-7 loss at Kansas City at midseason. And his two interceptions in the second half of a 37-30 loss at Detroit in the finale when almost half of his passing yards came on a tight end screen.
It’s those plays that must be eradicated from his game if he’s going to be a successful starter at some point in his career.
Love is under contract for two more seasons. Unless Rodgers retires after the upcoming season, it’s almost impossible to believe the Packers will pick up the fifth-year option, which will be worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $20 million guaranteed.
“I see him work every day and the things we’re asking him to do, and getting better with the little things,” LaFleur said. “Like all players, there will come a time when they’ve got to go out there and do it. For Jordan, he hasn’t had a lot of those times yet. At some point, he’s going to have to go out there and do it.”
That point is not now.
