Jordan Love on Knee Injury: ‘It Was Very Scary’

Fans weren’t the only people concerned after Green Bay Packers QB Jordan Love suffered a knee injury during the final moments of the Week 1 loss to the Eagles. Love was, too.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) celebrates a 16-10 victory agianst the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. / Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – When he was twisted to the turf during the closing seconds in Brazil, Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love thought his season might have ended.

“When it happened, it was one of those things, it was very scary, definitely not knowing what happened,” Love said after returning to practice on Wednesday, 12 days after he had to be helped off the field following the season-opening loss to the Eagles.

“I’ve never had an ACL or anything like that, so I didn’t know what that felt like, didn’t know what that might be. A lot of thoughts went through my head, for sure.”

Love, who practiced with a knee brace to protect the sprained MCL in his left knee, was listed as limited participation on the injury report. How he feels on Thursday following Wednesday’s practice and Friday after Thursday’s practice, and if he’s able to move well enough in the pocket to keep himself safe, will determine whether he’ll play on Sunday at the Tennessee Titans.

“I’m going to take the week and just take it day-by-day and see how it feels,” he said, “but I’m not going to make any decision on that right now. I’m hopeful that I’ll get to that point where I can get in there, but we’re just going to take it day-by-day and see.”

That Love is even in the mix to start against the Titans is remarkable considering the scene during those final moments in Sao Paulo.

Love writhed in pain on the turf for a couple minutes before he was helped off the field. He then walked to the locker room after the game with the help of a trainer and running back Josh Jacobs.

Close-up videos of Love’s left knee popping went viral and amplified the concerns.

“When it happened, it was very painful,” Love said. “I was telling people it’s the most pain I’ve been in so, you know, just a lot of emotions, but definitely very painful and didn’t know in the moment what might have happened, what the injury actually was, how long I might be out. It was definitely a scary moment, but it was very painful.”

It wasn’t until the team landed in Green Bay the next day that Love was able to get the testing done to diagnose the injury. That made for a long flight home filled with discomfort and uncertainty.

“I was able to walk on it, put some pressure on it, so that was a good sign,” Love said.

Having dodged a bullet, Love focused on rehabbing to get himself back in the lineup as soon as possible.

While coach Matt LaFleur held out hope for Love all week, he downgraded him to doubtful on the injury report on Saturday and made him inactive on Sunday.

“Last week was a lot of treatment and rehab exercises just trying to get my knee back,” Love said. “Didn’t practice last week. Just taking it day by day, again. There was a lot of mental reps of going through the game plan and trying to keep myself in the game and just being in the film room and learn from those reps I was missing, so just trying to stay as fresh as I can and stay ready if there was the opportunity for me getting cleared.”

Love said “there’s a lot of boxes” that need to be checked before he can line up to face the Titans’ stout defense on Sunday.

Not that it will impact the organizational decision on whether Love will play this week, but Malik Willis did enough last week to help Green Bay beat the Colts. While the team ran the ball 53 times, Willis on third down was 7-of-8 passing and converted five times to do his part in the 16-10 victory.

 “I’m very proud,” Love said. “I think offensively we played really well. The O-line dominated all game. The backs did a really good job. And it takes everybody. The tight ends, the receivers blocking, doing their job, but the run game was on point. I think Malik did a great job. And I think definitely, you look at it and I think what we did last week gives everybody more confidence going forward if I’m not cleared this week.

“So, I love that. I love that we got the ‘dub’ and it’s a big confidence boost moving forward into this next week.”

More Green Bay Packers News

Here's the initial #Packers-Titans injury report of the week. Jordan Love was limited participation, which was made abundantly clear after practice.https://t.co/aDVCKO7JtZ

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 18, 2024

Packers-Titans Wednesday injury report | Jordan Love practices (with video) | New receiver to practice squad | Lloyd to IR; running back promoted | Packers are underdogs vs. Titans | Packers-Titans matchups | Consensus NFL power rankings | Injuries for upcoming opponents | Three Packers-Colts overreactions | Defense delivers vs. Colts | Josh Jacobs brings the heat | Report card: Packers-Colts grades | Malik Willis plays role to perfection