How Does Love’s Preseason Compare With Rodgers in 2008?

Packers QB Jordan Love closed his preseason with a touchdown pass to Christian Watson against Seattle. Up next: Week 1 at the Chicago Bears.

Author:
Bill Huber
Updated:
Aug 26, 2023 10:03 PM EDT
Original:
Aug 26, 2023

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love capped a spotless preseason on Saturday with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Christian Watson.

Love started all three preseason games and threw one touchdown in each. By the numbers:

- 7-of-10 for 46 yards with one touchdown, zero interceptions and a 112.9 rating vs. Cincinnati.

- 5-of-8 for 84 yards with one touchdown, zero interceptions and a 137.5 rating vs. New England.

- 9-of-15 for 63 yards with one touchdown, zero interceptions and a 91.8 rating vs. Seattle.

Added together, that’s 21-of-33 passing (63.6 percent) for 193 yards with three touchdowns, zero interceptions and a 109.8 rating.

“I think for me it was just going out there and wanting to feel comfortable,” Love said after a 19-15 victory over the Seahawks. “Playing the same way I play in practice is a big thing for me – not having it feel any different out there, any nerves or anything like that. So, I think that was the biggest thing for me, and I think I did that. I felt comfortable, credit to everybody on the offense, but that was the goal for me.”

Jordan Love after catching his own pass vs. Seattle (Photo by Jeff Hanisch/USA Today Sports Images)

Against Seattle, Love showed off his legs with three rushes for 21 yards. Love didn’t scramble much during training camp, but his athletic ability will add another dimension to the offense.

“I think games, that’s the time to be able to just break it out,” he said. “I’ve always felt comfortable running it and I haven’t felt discouraged. Matt (LaFleur), he’s always been good on letting me play, letting me do my thing out there. Obviously, they want to make sure I’m not taking any hits, so just be smart getting out of the pocket.”

On the touchdown drive, Love completed 7-of-10 passes. The first incompletion was a drop. Another was an underthrown deep ball to Christian Watson that should have been a touchdown but was broken up.

“It was a great route by him,” Love said. “I was able to see at the top of my drop that he just won, beat the DB and was running away. It was just a ball I underthrew. As it left my hand, I thought it was good. But the more it was getting out there, I saw him, once he turned his shoulders to come back to it, I was like, ‘Aw, man.’ So, that was definitely one I wish I could have back. Whether the wind negated it or what, it’s just something you’ve got to be able to work through. But got to hit those ones.”

For what it’s worth, in four preseason games in 2008, Aaron Rodgers as the team’s first-time starter completed 37-of-54 passes (68.5 percent) for 436 yards with three touchdowns, one interception and a 103.6 rating.

Now comes the real tests. In 15 days, the Packers will play at the Chicago Bears to kick off the 2023 NFL season and a new era in franchise history. After taking a vanilla approach to the preseason games, LaFleur will turn it loose in Week 1.

“We have our whole offense in,” Love said. “We’ve been able to rep it [in joint practices] vs. the Bengals, the Patriots, and get different looks. But I think once we have our game plan in going into the season, we’re going to be just fine, and we’re going to flourish in that scenario.”