Despite being down four key starters, the Green Bay Packers improved to 2-1 on the season after an unbelievable fourth-quarter comeback led by Jordan Love and Romeo Doubs. The game certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Packers now find themselves atop the NFC North. After three games, Jordan Love has certainly exceeded expectations. The question that now remains is will he keep up this level of play?
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Filling Large Shoes
With the departure of Aaron Rodgers to New York, Jordan Love had to take quite a step up from his previous position. Rodgers is a quarterback who led the Packers to 12 playoff seasons in 17 seasons. Though Rodgers had time to mentor the young quarterback, it was difficult to expect much of Love with the lack of playing time.
In a season in which the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings were expected to be the faces of the NFC North, eyes shifted away from the Packers. The departure of Rodgers, along with their lack of success in 2022, gave the Packers low expectations heading into the 2023 NFL Season. Leaving it up to a first-year starter in Love to salvage their season didn’t exactly boost anyone’s confidence.
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Exceeding Expectations
In his first three games, Jordan Love has passed for 655 yards, seven touchdowns, and just one interception. His biggest concern has been his completion percentage, but that should work itself out with playing time. Statistically speaking, Love has been nothing short of fantastic. A winning record to pair with these stats builds his case as a solid quarterback even further. While they haven’t been great teams, wins are wins in the NFL and inches them one step closer to the playoffs every week.
The Packers have a relatively easy schedule, more particularly for their offense to play well. Over the next six weeks or so, Love will have an opportunity to keep proving doubters wrong, adding not only to his statistics but to the win column as well.
How much potential does Love Possess?
Love’s season is starting to play out similarly to Jalen Hurts’ first few games. While he hasn’t installed full confidence in everybody, he has displayed signs of being able to play at a high level in this league. An ironic “Love-Hurts” comparison could be repeatedly looked at in the future. While he hasn’t had as much rushing success, the comparison is primarily in how their career has played out.
Hurts quickly went from a backup quarterback to the third-best player in the NFL according to the NFL Top 100 list in just two seasons. This isn’t to say Love will make the same jump, but he has the potential to quickly find himself in top-10 talks. While this is based on a very small sample size, he hasn’t shown a legitimate cause for concern just yet. His potential was high coming out of college, but adding great coaching and mentorship could have prepared Love to be a great quarterback in his first season.
