The Green Bay Packers are going into the season with plenty of doubters. Of course, everyone could see this day coming. From the moment Jordan Love was drafted by the Packers in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, many doubted that he would ever be able to live up to the bar set by Aaron Rodgers. Now that the day has come for Love to take over, the doubters are louder than ever, especially since Rodgers is still in the league.
Related: Green Bay Packers: Entire Playbook “on the Table” for Offense with Jordan Love
While Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur have tried to temper expectations for the first-year starter, there are still those who refuse to accept anything less than prime Rodgers-like play from Love. One of these is former Detroit Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky, who is now an analyst for ESPN.
Dan Orlovsky Has Sky-High Expectations for Green Bay Packers Quarterback Jordan Love
Yesterday, Orlovsky listed his top five quarterbacks under the most pressure in 2023 on ESPN’s “Get Up.” In his opinion, Love is under the most pressure of any NFL quarterback:
“You were a first-round pick who got a contract extension without ever playing. They ran a Hall of Fame quarterback out of town for you. You’ve got to go prove that you are the right guy.
“You’ve got two really good young receivers, a rookie draft pick in Jayden Reed, two young rookie tight ends, a very healthy roster, and again a conference and division that’s not loaded. The expectation shouldn’t be that Jordan Love’s OK, the expectation should be that Jordan Love doesn’t skip a beat to what the Packers have been. This is a team that still has been to the NFC title game two of the last three years. He should play tremendous football.”
Orlovsky, a former fifth round pick with a 2-10 career record to go with 15 career touchdowns and 13 interceptions, is generally a level-headed analyst. This is why his take here is nearly as surprising as when he ran out of bounds in the end zone for a safety.
The Packers would not have moved onto Jordan Love if they did not think he could be a good quarterback. While they try to temper expectations, the belief in his abilities and his work ethic is there. Numerous Packers players have stated their commitment to and belief in Love as their new starting quarterback as well.
The inconsistent thing about Orlovsky’s take is this: “what the Packers have been” is an 8-9 team that missed the Playoffs behind subpar quarterback play. Prior to that, they were a dominant regular season team that choked in the Playoffs. If Orlovsky really wants to say that Love is under pressure, he should claim that it is Super Bowl or bust. To be honest, the expectation should be to improve upon last season’s disappointment, not to match it.
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