In his first season as a starter, Jordan Love ranked in the top 10 for passing yards, passing touchdowns, PFF passing grade, and big-time throws. He was a top-five quarterback in big-time throws under pressure and led the league in big-time throws when blitzed. Moreover, he captained the youngest NFL team since the 1970s to the postseason.
One of Love’s most impressive traits last year was his ability to stay composed while the pocket was collapsing. Everyone likes to talk about Love’s touchdown pass to Dontayvion Wicks against the Dallas Cowboys in the playoffs. However, one of his most underrated plays of the year came in the regular season when he hit Christian Watson with a touchdown pass against the Kansas City Chiefs.
There will be higher expectations for Love and the Packers in 2024. If Green Bay’s offense comes out in 2024 like they did in the second half of last season, there’s no doubt that Love could be in the MVP conversation.
Sounds hyperbolic? Consider that last year, he was PFF’s highest-graded quarterback in the NFL since Week 12.
For Jordan Love to enter the MVP conversation, he must perform consistently throughout all 17 games of the season. In 2023, there was a noticeable shift in his performance. In the first seven games, Love’s average passing grade was a below-average 60.9. However, in the last 10 games, his average grade rose to 78.3.
Love would also likely need to guide the Packers to the No. 1 seed for him to seriously contend for the MVP title. Since 2015, eight of the last nine MVP winners have achieved this feat. However, only Cam Newton, Tom Brady, and Patrick Mahomes reached the Super Bowl.
It’s worth noting that all of the last nine MVP winners are quarterbacks. Moreover, these quarterbacks collectively averaged 13 wins in the regular season. That statistic suggests that reaching such a milestone would be another crucial factor in Love’s MVP candidacy.
Since 2020, NFL MVPs have averaged 4,335 passing yards and 37.5 passing touchdowns. Last year, Love broke the 4,000-passing yard mark and the 30-touchdown barrier.
With the chemistry he developed with his talented teammates during the previous season, Love has the potential to further enhance his performance.
Love will also need to focus on protecting the football more effectively. Last year, he had six games featuring zero turnover-worthy plays. However, there were also six games where he had two turnover-worthy plays each, totaling 11 games with at least one such play. Love maintained a relatively low 2.5% turnover-worthy play rate, which is commendable. Nevertheless, consistently protecting the football is a crucial aspect that separates good quarterbacks from great ones.
According to DraftKings and FanDuel, Love is tied for the fifth-best odds to win MVP in 2024. However, he trails behind Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, and C.J. Stroud. Brock Purdy, and Jalen Hurts are also inside the top-10 favorites to win MVP. Love will face off against all three of them. To truly enter the MVP conversation, Love must outperform these quarterbacks and their respective teams, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Philadelphia Eagles, in matchups that could ultimately decide the top seed in the NFC.
Moreover, Green Bay’s offensive line was a top-10 pass-blocking unit in 2023. With such strong protection up front and the potential for the skill positions to elevate their game alongside Jordan Love, there’s ample reason to believe he can emerge as an MVP-caliber player in 2024.
