The Green Bay Packers have a bright future with Jordan Love under center. At least, that’s what the second half of the 2023 season led us to believe.
Considering Love’s successful first season after replacing Rodgers, it’s no surprise he’s gaining popularity. During the regular season, he started all 17 games, completing 372 of 579 passes (64.2%) for 4,159 yards and 32 touchdowns with 11 interceptions (96.1 passer rating). It is noteworthy that Love had a strong finish to the season, throwing 18 touchdowns and only one interception while completing 70.3% of his passes.
Love looked like one of the best quarterbacks in the league for a long time. However, one of his former teammates will be suiting up for a division rival and he had something to say about it.
Green Bay Packers Quarterback Had Something To Say About Former Teammate Signing With Division Rival
During the week, Marcedes Lewis signed a new one-year deal for $2 million with a division rival to play his 19th season in the league. Although the tight end is playing for the Chicago Bears, not the Packers, Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love is happy for him:
“Marcedes is awesome, I’m super happy for him to be coming back, it’s awesome,” Love said. ” We all know, it was my first experience being in the NFL, seeing Big Dog, just the leader he is. He is a vocal leader and he’s also just that physical presence out there on the field where it doesn’t matter who he’s going against, he’s not going to get beat.
“That’s kind of his mindset he always carries. He’s going to go out there and win no matter who he’s against so, I learned a lot of lessons from Big Dog and I’m very appreciative of my time with him… He brings that veteran presence to a team, which is something that you need.”
Upon signing with the Bears for 2023, Lewis became the oldest tight end in the league, surpassing Tony Gonzalez’s 17 seasons. Last season, he played 17 games for the Bears. However, he only managed four catches for 29 yards and one touchdown. In Chicago’s 27-16 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Christmas Eve, he scored his only touchdown.
Nikki Chavanelle of On3 highlighted just how impressive Lewis’ longevity has been in this league:
Lewis’ longevity can be credited to his exceptional record of staying healthy. He only missed significant playing time in three seasons – 2013, 2014 and 2016 – for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jaguars drafted Lewis with the No. 28 overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft out of UCLA. They held on to him for 12 seasons before releasing him into free agency in the 2018 offseason. The Green Bay Packers snapped him up on a one-year deal for $2.1 million, but he stuck around for four more seasons.
Through his first 18 seasons in the NFL, Lewis has racked up 436 catches in 268 regular-season games played. He has 5,113 yards with 40 touchdowns. Despite his long career, the Bears tight end has been to the postseason just four times. He played two playoff games with the Jaguars in 2007, then made runs with the Packers from 2019-2021. He received one second-team All-Pro honor in 2010, and also made the Pro Bowl that same season.
When Sundays come around, Love won’t be rooting for the Bears, but he’ll be happy to see Lewis getting another crack at it.
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