Jordan Love isn’t your usual quarterback going into his third year in the NFL. While fellow 2020 first-round QBs Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Tua Tagovailoa have seen extensive action, Love hasn’t had much opportunity to show why the Green Bay Packers traded up to grab him with the 26th-overall pick.
Love got no playing time in 2020. The preseason was canceled because of the pandemic, and he was inactive all season because the Packers placed him behind Aaron Rodgers and Tim Boyle on the depth chart. However, we saw Love in live action this year.
What can we learn from Love’s game tape? Let’s take a look.
Preseason Game 1
Houston Texans 26, Packers 7
- Stats: 12/17, 122 yds, TD
- PFF offensive grade: 72.4
- PFF passing grade: 71.2
Best play
Love was able to get a first down and make a beautiful throw, showing the arm talent that made general manager Brian Gutekunst enamored with him. On third-and-nine, he found tight end Jace Sternberger on a seam route between three defenders for a big gain. It was his best throw of the entire preseason.
Worst play
On a third-and-six, his first third-down of the game, Love stood in the pocket and threw a dangerous ball against double coverage to rookie receiver Amari Rodgers. It was incomplete but could have been intercepted.
Analysis
Love was as good as you’d expect from a quarterback who hadn’t played for almost two years. He had some nice throws, good reads, and solid pocket presence. Some dangerous patterns —he threw two passes in double coverage — but in general, it was a nice performance.
Preseason Game 2
Buffalo Bills 19, Packers 0
- Stats: 12/18, 149 yds, INT
- PFF offensive grade: 43.5
- PFF passing grade: 48.3
Best play
After a big mistake and interception, Love had a redeemer pass. He got a free play following an offside and made a difficult throw, putting the ball in a perfect place to find Malik Taylor near the right sideline.
Worst play
Love had had a good fourth-down conversion on the previous play, moving out of the pocket and finding Dominique Dafney for a long first down. His next pass, though, was one of the worst of his season. It highlighted a frequent problem of his college tape. When pressured, Love panicked and forced an unnecessary throw into the end zone that was easily picked by former Packers safety Micah Hyde.
Analysis
Maybe Love felt the weeks without practice because of his shoulder injury and had a weaker performance. Although the quarterback made some great plays, he was also very inconsistent and inefficient in the red zone – a problem that would persist throughout his de facto rookie season.
Week 1
New Orleans Saints 38, Packers 3
- Stats: 5/7, 68 yds
- PFF offensive grade: 76.8
- PFF passing grade: 75.5
Best play
Love found Randall Cobb for a huge 32-yard gain. He moved well in the pocket, with calm, and floated a pass to Aaron Rodgers’ bestie.
Worst play
Another problematic red-zone experience for Love. He moved the offense and put Green Bay in position to score its first touchdown of the game. But he was pressured and fumbled, ending his regular-season debut.
Analysis
The first regular-season appearance for Love didn’t exactly go the way Packers fans had hoped for. He entered the Week 1 game against the Saints in the fourth quarter because the Packers were trailing 38-3 and there was no reason to keep Rodgers on the field. The number of plays was limited. However, you could argue Love played better than Rodgers but wasn’t able to capitalize on a good drive.
Week 9
Kansas City Chiefs 13, Packers 7
- Stats: 19/34, 190 yds, TD, INT
- PFF offensive grade: 30.0
- PFF passing grade: 29.2
Best play
More comfortable and with some rhythm after being heavily pressured for most of the game, Love conducted a solid drive in the fourth quarter and found Allen Lazard on an out pattern for Jordan’s first regular-season touchdown, a 20-yard gain. It wasn’t exactly a hard throw, but the Chiefs sent blitz on this fourth-and-five, and No. 10 was able to quickly release the ball to find his open receiver near the sideline.
Worst play
A throw Rodgers makes multiple times a game with ease was Love’s worst throw of the game. He tried to find Davante Adams on the outside, but the communication wasn’t perfect, the pass itself wasn’t good either. It was picked by L’Jarius Sneed.
Analysis
He didn’t do everything wrong — Love had some good throws and a decent drive. And the loss wasn’t all his fault — the game plan lacked options for the heavy pressure applied by Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. But Love clearly wasn’t prepared for his first start and for the stakes of the game. He was sloppy and insecure, producing three turnover-worthy plays, according to PFF. Even though the defense held the Mahomes-led Chiefs offense to 13 points, the Packers’ offense wasn’t able to score more than a touchdown.
Week 17
Packers 37, Minnesota Vikings 10
- Stats: 2/4, 19 yds
- PFF offensive grade: 52.4
- PFF passing grade: 41.9
Best play
On a 3rd and 3, Love had a good read on an RPO and found Allen Lazard for an easy first down.
Worst play
Also on a third down, this time needing 10 yards to move the chains, Love missed Marquez Valdes-Scantling on an out route. But at least he didn’t allow Vikings’ defenders to have a chance either.
Analysis
Love entered when the game was all but over. He only had four pass attempts, completing two of them. It was all simple because the main goal was to kill the clock.
Week 18
Detroit Lions 37, Packers 30
- Stats: 10/17, 134 yds, TD, 2 INTs
- PFF offensive grade: 39.4
- PFF passing grade: 36.5
Best throw
There wasn’t any big individual moment for Love in this game. The touchdown was much more about Josiah Deguara and the blocking scheme. But Love had an important fourth-down conversion before the first Packers offensive touchdown of the second half. On a fourth-and-two, Love moved the pocket to his right and made a difficult throw near the ground to Juwann Winfree to keep the drive alive.
Worst throw
Love had around 40 seconds to score a touchdown and tie the game, but his last drive of the season ended with an ugly interception. Pressured when the middle of the offensive line wasn’t able to pick up a blitz, Love overthrew Equanimeous St. Brown and gifted Lions safety Tracy Walker with a game-ending interception.
Analysis
For the first time, the offense was able to produce a decent amount of points with Jordan Love on the field. The Packers scored 17 in the second half. On the other hand, he had two turnover-worthy plays, no big-time throws, and didn’t show signs of development since his preseason action against the Chiefs. That’s the most worrying part.
Regular-season totals
Stats: 36/62 (58.1%), 411 yds, 2 TDs, 3 INTs, 68.7 passer rating, 3 fumbles (1 lost)
- PFF offensive grade: 36.2
- PFF passing grade: 31.3
- PFF run grade: 70.5
- Big-time throws: 1
- Turnover-worthy plays: 6
Verdict
The Green Bay Packers never intended to use Jordan Love immediately, he was a developmental project. But after two seasons, it’s hard to imagine his development is going as the Packers hoped when traded up to get him in 2020.
Love had some good plays, showing arm talent and evolution as a quarterback. But he was mostly the same player his pre-draft haters thought he would be: He was inefficient, made a lot of mistakes, and lacked accuracy.
It’s not a surprise that Matt LaFleur insisted during his last press conference they badly want Aaron Rodgers back in 2022. And not because Love is definitely a bust, but because he needs at least one more year of development before having a real chance of being ready.
