Will Jordan Love exceed expectations? Could he, against all odds, give the Packers their third straight exceptional quarterback? Perhaps he’ll be so terrible and overwhelmed that it becomes immediately obvious that the Packers made a huge mistake? Maybe he lands in quarterbacks no man’s land? Good enough to win some games and get a big contract but not good enough to take the team any place significant i.e. Kirk Cousins or Dak Prescott?
These are the questions at the tip of the NFL world’s collective tongues. As analysts and talking heads sort their way through predictions and reports the only voices with intimate knowledge at this point in the process are those in the room and on the field with Love.
Christian Watson has already proven willing to speak honestly when a national media storm is brewing. During the Aaron Rodgers drama, Watson made an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show and pushed back on the narrative that Jordan Love may not be ready. “Obviously 12 being the starting quarterback last year it would seem like we wouldn’t have got a lot of time with Jordan, but I spent a lot of time with Jordan Love actually.” Watson said. “Whether it was meetings outside of practice to get that playbook down…us younger guys had meetings with Jordan Love weekly going into the later weeks of the season and we had quite a bit of younger guy developmental stuff that we did early in the season so we got reps in with him. I think that relationship and that connection is strong already.”
Now during OTA’s, Watson was once again willing to step into the fray and speak out for his young quarterback. Speaking to Trevor Sikkema of PFF about his first season and future with the team Watson said:
“People need to understand that [Love] was learning and practicing and in the meeting rooms with a Hall of Fame quarterback each and every day. He’s his own quarterback, but I’m sure he’s taken so many things from Aaron [Rodgers]. We’ve seen a lot of flashes of what he can do. It’s only going to be put more on display. Everything we’ve seen so far is only going to be multiplied. We’re ready to go out there and ball. We have full confidence in him.”
It’s not just Watson that’s feeling positive about Green Bay’s future QB.. According to a recent piece by ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, Watson’s fellow receivers shared positives on the first time starter as well. THe responses spoke to the culture in the locker room.
Dontayvion Wicks loves the youth connection saying “Having Jordan Love, him being young, I’m able to relate to him more and able to just have the same vibe and talk to him. We sat at a table and talked, ate, things like that. It’s just building that bond with him, being that we’re so young. We’re going to be growing together.” 2nd round pick Jayden Reed added he already felt “very comfortable” with Love and said, “I can go up to him, and he’ll come up to me sometimes. I think it’s mutual at this point.”
No one in football is dumb enough to think a team would be better off without a Hall of Fame quarterback. But, as quotes like these continue to pour out of younger playmakers, there is something to the idea of addition by subtraction. Keyshawn Johnson, on ESPN’s NFL Live, pointed out, from a former star player’s perspective, what coaching a superstar can do to a staff.
So I understand that the top quarterback that was there…is no longer there and there’s a young man named Jordan Love. And when you look at Jordan Love and you go ‘well you know he’s never played. He’s never done it.’ But could it be such a thing as addition by subtraction. Yes it can be. Because you don’t need to do all the things you did [with] Aaron. Sometimes you overthink when you have powerful players like Aaron Rodgers because you get out of starting to do things. You start trying to be too fancy. Maybe simple is the better way to go and maybe that helps that move into the next direction to get past those seven wins that people think they’re only gonna get.” Keyshawn said, adding “My whole point is when coaches coach sometimes they do more because they think they have something in a certain player. When they realize that they don’t need to do that things change for the better.”
This year will certainly be a process. Matt LaFleur’s consistent call for patience is warranted. But as the positive vibes in the locker room and on the field continue, Green Bay’s new culture will go a long way in helping the young Packers reach their potential in the future.
While we’re on the subject of Jordan Love, two former Packers quarterbacks handed out some advice to the young quarterback. At the 26th Annual Tellurian Celebrity Golf Tournament Don Majkowski and Lynn Dickey found themselves in front of the media offering advice to the Packers QB
“He’s just got to be himself, study as hard as he can, know the offense as best he can. He’s got some huge shoes to fill.” said the Magic Man. “The last 30 years, with Brett and Aaron, I mean, that was some of the best quarterback play– ever, in football’s history.”
Dickey added “I would tell him, as cliché as it is, ‘Hey, let’s try to be 1-0.’ And then the second week, ‘Hey, let’s be 1-0 this week.’ And if you’re good enough, the Ws will pile up and take care of themselves. But he’s not going to fill Aaron Rodgers’ shoes. And if I was Matt LaFleur, I would tell him, ‘Don’t even try to do that. We want to concentrate on all the things you can do. Just be you.’”
