Like Manning, Love Must Learn How to Win

Aaron Rodgers struggled to win games during his first season as a starting quarterback. So did Peyton Manning, who Jordan Love met at Packers training camp.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – In 2008, Aaron Rodgers was thrown into the ultimate pressure cooker. A fourth-year player with only one real piece of game film, Rodgers was asked to replace the legendary Brett Favre.

Rodgers’ numbers were great during his debut season. The Green Bay Packers were not, finishing with a 6-10 record.

In 2023, Jordan Love is being thrown into a pressure cooker, too. A fourth-year player with only three real pieces of game film, Love is being asked to replace the legendary Rodgers.

Love has talked to Rodgers about those experiences. On Monday, Love got to talk to another legend when Hall of Famer Peyton Manning visited practice and met with Love individually as well as the team.

While there are exceptions, good quarterbacks put up numbers but great quarterbacks win games. However, even great quarterbacks can have a hard time winning games early in their careers.

Look no further than the legend who met with Love on Monday. Manning was the first overall selection of the 1998 NFL Draft. While he didn’t face the pressure of stepping in for a legend – Jim Harbaugh won two his 11 starts in 1997 – Manning had the weight of the world on his shoulders because of expectations.

The Colts went 3-13 in 1998 as Manning threw an NFL-rookie record 28 interceptions. There were signs of greatness, to be sure, but that he’d retire as the NFL’s career leader in passing yards and touchdowns wasn’t exactly preordained.

“I think the biggest thing is just keep going,” Love said on Tuesday of learning how to win. “Never let your head down. It’s not going to be perfect. There’s going to be losses. It’s not going to be a perfect season every year, and it’s finding that capability to bounce back when not everything’s perfect. Peyton talked about that. That’s his biggest thing, handling adversity.”

Jordan Love (Photo by Tork Mason/USA Today Sports Images)

Manning handled it all with aplomb. In 1999, he cut his interceptions almost in half as the Colts reversed their record to 13-3. In 2000, he led the NFL in passing yards and passing touchdowns.

The Colts went 12-4 but lost in the AFC Championship Game in 2003. In 2004, they went 12-4 again but lost in the divisional round. In 2005, they were a dominant 14-2 but lost in the divisional round again. Finally, in 2006, they won the Super Bowl.

“It’s just finding a way to bounce back and get over that hump,” Love said. “He talked about, he had a lot of years where they had some really bad playoff losses and the following year is when they went to the Super Bowl. His message to all of the guys was just how do we bounce back? How do we get over that hump? I think that’s always what it is, just being able to come together as a team, stay unified and get able to get over those tough points.”

Love’s at a bit of a tough point now. After one big day, Love went a combined 14-of-28 passing on Monday and Tuesday. The last two days, he failed to get a single first down during his two 2-minute drills.

Manning, meanwhile, was Capt. Comeback, ranking second all-time in fourth-quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. Coach Matt LaFleur was on the losing end of one of those comebacks.

It’s only Aug. 1 so there’s no reason to panic, but Love knows the urgency of the drill. To escape the career pressure cooker will require clutch performances in the late-game pressure cooker.

“That’s when we need to drive down and win that game,” Love said. “So, it’s frustrating that we haven’t been able to even get a drive started, let alone move the ball down field to score. It’s something we’re going to go back to film, figure it out.”

More Green Bay Packers Training Camp News

It was another day of post-practice humiliation for the #Packers' offense.

What else happened at training camp? We've got:
- Jordan Love's day
- Play of the day
- Player of the day
- A couple big moves on the depth chart
- Lots of highlights
- Morehttps://t.co/oUlKdS56Ym

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) August 1, 2023

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