They Said Tank for a Rookie Quarterback
Despite the outside chatter to replace Jordan Love after the season, he remained calm and poised
By GregMeinholz
After week 7 of the 2023 season, the Packers were 2-5 and looked like they couldn't stay out of their own way. We were heading toward Halloween and things were looking scary for the Packers offense. First-year starting QB Jordan Love just wasn't connecting as well with his receivers and was averaging about a 57% completion percentage. Scoring in the first half of games seemed like a pipe dream as the offense couldn't muster more than 9 points total in the first half of the previous five contests. Things definitely could have been better for Love and company and the discussions began as to whether or not he was the guy for Green Bay.
I was reading it all on social media. "The Packers should just tank for a better draft pick." I was viewing way too early NFL mock drafts that had the Packers finishing with only 4-6 wins and drafting Michigan QB, JJ McCarthy to take the reins of the Packers offense. So many faces were already sticking a fork in the Love era. I was even receiving texts from good friends that they had seen enough from Love, it was time to look elsewhere. Throughout all of this though, I couldn't help but notice Jordan Love's attitude. Never once did it seem like Love was bothered by his misfortune more than just a "well that stunk, on to the next." He always seemed to be ready for the next play or even the next game so he could move on. Love was that cool customer the whole time and didn't let anything rattle him. So, I kept responding to everyone, that I liked what I was seeing from him, and that I thought we were going to be fine.
Well, as you can imagine, I got responses that compared me to the band, Cheap Trick telling me the Dream Police live inside of my head. They said my homer brain was skewing my vision. Nonetheless, I was sticking with Jordan Love, he was my guy. And I was rewarded with the Packers having a record of 7-3 to finish the season with Love reaching a 69% completion percentage in this time, including a trip to the playoffs. Love wasn't done and we got two more playoff games after this. As we look to the Super Bowl being played later today, there are many, myself included, that believe if a handful of plays had gone our way, it could've been the Packers lining up against the Chiefs.
Suddenly, I wasn't so crazy with my confidence in Jordan Love.
Looking to the Future
We all want to pull our receipts of who the Love haters were during the low moments of the past season. It looks like the Packers are about to lock down Jordan Love for the considerable future as their starting quarterback, and that's something to celebrate. Let's look at the carousel of legendary quarterback replacements in the NFL. I don't think the Dolphins have had a decent consistent Quarterback since Dan Marino retired after the 1999 season. The Bills finally found Josh Allen 22 years after Jim Kelly retired. For the Packers to have had great QB play for the last 30 years is absurd. But there's a chance they've done just that.
Brett Favre was a bit of a wild card in his career. You never knew whether he was going to do something amazing, or just boneheaded and throw another interception. His way of taking chances won the Packers many games during his tenure. But they also lost a few heartbreakers. Aaron Rodgers was an absolute surgeon behind the center. He was very careful with the ball and never gave up many turnovers. But a problem I believe Rodgers had, was trust in his receivers. He didn't like to throw to receivers he didn't have a ton of confidence in, and I believe that ruined shot at another Super Bowl ring with the Packers.
What about Jordan Love? What can we expect from number 10?
I believe from Love, we are going to see a mix of Rodgers and Favre. We're going to see a bit of the surgeon behind the center. However, I think that we'll also see that Favre risk taker action as well from Love as he won't be content to throw the ball away and will want to make something happen.
Go out and ask any Packers fans what they'd want in a Quarterback and I guarantee Rodgers and Favre's qualities will be high on the list.
Jordan Love seems to have a vast understanding of the game that will be invaluable in his career. But he's also a risk taker it appears so we might have a few nail-biters here and there. In the end, I think it's his calm demeanor that will define his career. Once the entire team is behind you, if they think you demonstrate passion and skill and that you're ready to take the risks necessary to win, you're ready to lead them.
With the qualities of many of our past greats present within Jordan Love, I think that will hopefully lead us to more Super Bowls in the years to come.
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Greg Meinholz is a lifelong devoted Packer fan. A contributor to CheeseheadTV as well as PackersTalk. Follow him on Twitter @gmeinholz for Packers commentary, random humor, beer endorsements, and occasional Star Wars and Marvel ramblings.
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Comments (66)
jvole
February 11, 2024 at 06:33 am
Favre and Rodgers were fun to watch but for different reasons and I always thought a mix of the two approaches to quarterbacking would be phenomenal. Love might have that as he both reads coverages (Rodgers-like) and then will, occasionally take the risky shot (Favre-like). What I hope he has, or develops, is that intangible thing that Mahomes, Brady, and yes, even Eli Manning had. In the biggest games, these guys have or had their best days. As great as our early greats were, I think it was a wild-card whether they would blow it out during the biggest games. Fingers crossed for Love.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 11, 2024 at 12:11 pm
Personality wise, I'm hoping JL is studying Bart Starr. The comparisons have already been made and I think that can be deliberately cultivated. Not many are as accurate as AR12 at his best. I hope to see JL10 NOT taking risks that require threading a needle from a mile away, at least not until and unless he develops the pinpoint accuracy and timing to do so. He learned when to throw the ball away to avoid the sack in Pittsburgh, next I'd like to see him know when it's time for the scramble drill. I don't know if his running ability has peaked or can be developed further, but he can change the way opposing defenses need to scheme against GB and give them nightmares simply by needing to be accounted for.
I lived in Indy when the Colts arrived and saw Peyton Manning's career; his play action fake was no joke and even when everybody knew he was throwing to Marvin Harrison he managed some completions. JL10's fake handoffs are ok but he could progress by studying Peyton in this regard. I suppose #18 is more famous for being a field general, JL10 has certainly been studying that aspect of the position and backing up AR12 clearly helped him along these lines! I think his ability to read the opposing defense and adjust is arguably one of the things he's best at, which is a great priority to have.
Not mentioned in the article is how much the progress of the O line was essential to what looked like JL10's improvement. Certainly injuries was part of it, as was playing together; more than that caused the O line to improve though. That's really the story of the turnaround.
GPG!
jvole
February 11, 2024 at 03:04 pm
I didn't get to see Bart Starr play but I heard the same about him as you describe. JL does have a level-headedness and work ethic that will hopefully keep him listening to his coaches rather than, well, no need to dredge that up.
jIM tAYLOR WAS THE BEST
February 11, 2024 at 01:29 pm
They need to give him a contract with incentives and protect themselves from Kirk Cousins injury. They have a short window unless they find another hot fast running back. They need a reliable FG kicker. The Packers lost so many games in the past because of bad special teams. They should avoid the tush push and QB runs. Jordan is not fast or a good runner and like Teddy Bridgewater, a QB who runs is one play away from tanking his career. The Chicago.Bears suck because they have a running QB who cant pass. The Eagles sucked because they relied on a running QB. They failed on a tush push durinh which the QBs neck was grabbed potentially ending his career and making him paralyzed Tom Brady qas not a scrambler but a passer and he was a winner. Vick was fun to watchbut not a winner Kapernil a flash in the plan. Mahomes will have a short career if he keeps scrambling. Joe Thiesman broke a leg and ended his career.
Spock
February 11, 2024 at 06:56 am
"...Packers having a record of 7-3 to finish the season..." ?????????????? I believe they played more than 10 games, lol. "For the Packers to have had great QB play for the last 30 years is absurd. But there's a chance they've done just that." ??? A chance? They've already had the 30 years. You could use some serious editing in this article.
@Kumps76
February 11, 2024 at 07:48 am
Spock-he’s referring to the 7-3 finish to the season after the 2-5 start. But, yeah we’ve already had 30 years of HOF QB play. If Love can put his 15 years in we’ll have 45 years of ridiculous QB play.
dblbogey
February 11, 2024 at 10:59 am
Reading is fundamental.
PackerHotDish
February 12, 2024 at 09:10 am
At least it should be!
LambeauPlain
February 11, 2024 at 07:03 am
Qualities of Favre and Rodgers in Love? Sure.
At this stage in Jordan's young career, I actually see more qualities of Bart Starr. Love has so much more athletic talent but he displays aspects of Starr's cool demeanor, leadership, and willingness to count on his teammates around him to also make plays with the ball and without it, especially blocking.
And, like Starr, he doesn't point fingers but leads by example in preparation and on game days.
What was Bart...a 17th rounder, and multi-year backup, until Vince saw his leadership abilities?
PackEyedOptimist
February 11, 2024 at 07:41 am
I like that comparison!
Don't discount Starr as an athlete, though. If you watch film of him in his prime, he moves well and has a very good arm.
He was pick 200, which is a sixth round pick today--higher than Brock Purdy at 262!
:-D
Oh, and Tom Brady was 199!
Bitternotsour
February 11, 2024 at 09:06 am
Starr had a marginal arm, but was very accurate (for the time). Jurgenson, Unitas, hell even Lamonica had better arms. Bart was surgical.
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 10:13 am
I am a big fan of Bart Starr, but he was also fortunate enough to have an incredible O-line protecting him. I believe Forrest Gregg, Fuzzy Thurston and Jerry Kramer were perennial all pros and Gregg is in the HOF. Bart could be surgical because he had time in a well protected pocket.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 11, 2024 at 03:25 pm
Exactly why I'm wanting Gutey to make the O line priority #1, trade FA or draft. Keep JL10 clean, give him his best chance for a career that's both great and long. Make the whole offense go, too.
HawkPacker
February 12, 2024 at 06:53 am
You make a good point Sic and I would like some improvement in the O line as well. If you look back at this season, you can see how they came together towards the end of the season. They have all made improvements and practice makes perfect? Yes, they could use some help, but I think the defense needs help more than the OL. We have a new DC and I am not sure how much help that will give us. Hopefully a lot!
Now just think for a bit, what if we get the right pieces in our defense to make it one of the better defenses in the NFL. To me, that is where we can make the largest improvement to get our team further in the playoffs.
PackEyedOptimist
February 11, 2024 at 10:30 am
Young/prime Starr had a much better than “marginal” arm.
He had PLENTY of deep, accurate, throws. In his later years, after injuries, it became marginal, but not in his prime.
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 10:54 am
Saw many of his games. A beautiful deep ball. Not as long as Tarkington, or Sonny Jurgenson, but very accurate. Was not able to see Johnny U. Those seats went to my brothers.
GregMeinholz
February 11, 2024 at 01:43 pm
You are 100% correct and I actually do personally compare Love a little more to Bart Starr. But in the article I had mentioned the fact that the Packers could have another one after 30 years of great QB play. So I was drawing from his predecessors of the last 30 years. Maybe I’ll have a Love and Starr piece sometime down the road.
stockholder
February 11, 2024 at 07:49 am
You can come up with all the excuses you want.
But the obvious problem was "Not protecting the QB"
The patch always came off against play-off teams.
The OL switching destroyed the QBs confidence.
Drafting a guy like JC Latham might just stop
the patch from coming off.
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 08:51 am
Massive guy, but his foot speed does not match with Morgan's. Speed rushers with bend will challenge him in the big leagues. Plug the safety void @ #25 if Kinchens is still on the board. The kid from Oak Creek, WI, so they will not draft him, just like skating over Badger LBs....
stockholder
February 11, 2024 at 11:44 am
Massive - And Thats just the reason he might Drop. Weight.
Morgan - Some are projecting Morgans best position is guard.
With JCL- The projection is BOTH LT and RT.
The big guy Moves! Its a WIN if you need a future OT.
I'm seriously looking at Lassiter at NB/Safety 2nd rd.
(An earlier Amos)
PhantomII
February 11, 2024 at 10:28 am
Yep, When GB came up against top defenses we did not have a stout enough 5 man OL to overcome a top 4 man DL and had to use TE's to chip block limiting the number of offensive targets our QB1 could move the chains with before a 3-N-out or a sack...then a punt. If we are going to utilize the sheer number of really good WR's and TE's to move the chains....Our OL is going to have to be big and bad and strong enough to dominate at the OL in the run or pass game. IFIFIFIFIFIF we can get that done, we will be able to put up points on anyone in the run or pass game.....and that's exactly what WE SHOULD DO. I knew JL was going to be good, when he came into the Eagles game and looked like it was not too big for him and we had a chance to win the game with AR out. I had not seen that from any of our other backups before. GPG....OL get in the Gym...Gute....Get us some bad ass OL men and another great RB. FA pro bowl Safety. Hit on draft picks, your 2023 draft was awesome.
WD
February 11, 2024 at 02:39 pm
Really? The Packer underrated O-line did not give up one sack in the two playoff games.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 11, 2024 at 03:31 pm
And there's 0 depth on the interior.
Leatherhead
February 11, 2024 at 08:46 pm
That’s an annoying fact. Here’s another: In the playoffs, they scored 70 points against two top defenses.
Coldworld
February 12, 2024 at 07:21 am
There’s talent in this O, which that shows, but the relevant question here is what would they have been able to do if Love was not having to move and improvise.
The greatest improvement on the OL late was Runyon, who may not be back. C remained an issue, RG is one and there is no depth at all at C. Tom is not an excuse not to have a true C competition in future and right now there is nothing behind Rhyan. Rhyan is still unproven as a starter, and other than Tom there is nothing. Now last season is done, Tom to C needs to be seen as a historical debate: he should now be at T absent no other options in an emergency and our drafting needs to pick up that slack.
As Love himself just said, the factor that neutered Dallas on critical plays wasn’t an OL, but Aaron Jones who covered for the issues that they were having. His description, not mine. That’s fantastic from him, but not physically sustainable or as effective against a more multiple threat opponent.
NickPerry
February 11, 2024 at 07:55 am
"We all want to pull our receipts of who the Love haters were during the low moments of the past season. It looks like the Packers are about to lock down Jordan Love for the considerable future as their starting quarterback, and that's something to celebrate."
I was one of these people, especially at 2-5 though I wouldn't call myself a "Hater" But I had DEFINITELY started wondering if Drake Maye was going to be a possibility. If not Maye them maybe Bo Nix. But I was alos about done with MLF then too. The ENTIRE offense sucked, especially in the first half. But when the Packers played Pittsburgh it ALL changed. The Packers still lost that game, but the baby gloves MLF had on Love came off.
When the gloves came off we stopped seeing what seemed like twenty 2 and 3 yard passes EVERY game. I'm sure it wasn't 20, but it FELT like it because defenses were just waiting on those same ole plays. LaFleur FINALLY allowed Love to cook. What we saw for the rest of the year was all we could have hoped for and then some.
There's still a small percentage of me that wants to see more before handing him that bag of money but I don't think that happens. I've heard $50 million a year more than once which I think is absurd right now. I'm hoping for something around $40 to $45 million with some incentives which could push it higher. Maybe in 3 years $50 would look like a bargain...I hope so. But after watching what the Packers have done to their salary cap the last few years to accommodate Rodgers, I'm hoping Love doesn't want to watch it either.
In 3 years there's going to be a LOT of players looking to get paid on this team. THAT'S a testament to how well Gute has drafted the last 2 years. From the 2022 draft you have Walker, Wyatt, Watson, Doubs, Tom, Walker, and possibly Enagbare. In 2023 just based on their rookie seasons you have Van Ness (Yes, I LIKE Van Ness...A LOT) Musgrave, Reed, Kraft, Wicks, Brooks, and Valentine. Maybe even Wooden and Johnson too.
Personally I think Love will be the perfect combination of Favre and Rodgers. As long as he's healthy, with this current roster, plus a few FA signings and 5 MORE picks in the top 100 of this draft, the Packers are LOADED. I honestly believe that...LOADED. I think Love will have as many SB wins as Rodgers and Favre combined and that's just in the next 5 years or so.
CasuallyObsessed
February 11, 2024 at 01:50 pm
Considering his down to earth feel and the fact that he did get to watch the 3 years of cap struggles, I think love takes even less and goes for more incentives.
Bitternotsour
February 12, 2024 at 10:39 am
Love has an agent to prevent him from giving discounts. Love is going to get paid the market rate for quarterbacks.
4thand10
February 11, 2024 at 02:02 pm
Im on train of seeing a bit more body of work from Love. Dont get me wrong.. I like what Ive seen from last yr to this one. Id just hate to see another super high salary handicapping the rest of the team or the ability to Acquire even more talent.Just seems hard to put and keep talent around high dollar QBs. Whatever they do sign him to , just hope for the best I guess.
Packerpasty
February 13, 2024 at 03:32 pm
Me too...I want to see a whole season...it looks promising but one never knows...im not going on five or six games, what about the five or six crappy games he played...no excuses next season, second year starting, fifth in the league, I expect him to play well...
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 08:16 am
While I very much appreciate Jordan Love and the future he provides for Packer fans, I would like to see a little more from him before we place him in the same category as Favre and Rodgers. Favre is a HOF QB, Rodgers will be and Love just completed his first year as a starter. Let's take a breath and give him some more time to evolve.
Few teams in the league have been fortunate enough to have consecutive great QBs - SF with Montana and Young is the only other team that comes immediately to mind - and Green Bay is one of them. I give major props to several iterations of the Green Bay Packer management for acquiring Favre, Rodgers and Love. If Love turns into another great QB, I believe that will be an unprecedented run of great QB play. And praise should be heaped on Wolf, Thompson and prospectively Gutekunst for being astute enough to acquire such talent.
We are fortunate fans to have such a well managed team. After all, we have a shining example of how not to manage a pro football team just to the south of us (the Bears still suck)!
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 08:57 am
His passes were electric. He's not a Game Manager. A solid head on his shoulders and a deep motivation to get the Gold. He understands where he has to improve with his footwork. Too bad Gutedkunst didn't secure Broderick Jones to cover his flank. He had the deep out on display at Utah State. You cannot teach arm strength.
Keep him protected with Blue Chip talent. Do not cut corners with the O line.
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 10:06 am
Agree with all of your points about Love. If he cleans up his footwork he could easily join Favre and Rodgers in the HOF. All the other tools are there. However poor footwork could also keep from being an elite QB which is why I am eager to see his growth in 2024.
I think the bigger O-line weakness is up the middle. Too many rushers had success over center and right guard. I want an injection of O-line talent, but more at IOL than OT.
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 10:41 am
Move Walker inside.
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 11:37 am
At 6' 6" he might be too tall for IOL. Too easy for DL to get under him and move him. Tom (at 6' 4") might be a better candidate for IOL - particularly center.
stockholder
February 11, 2024 at 12:03 pm
No - - I'd draft powers-Johnson first.
And if you wanted that OT so much last year.
You should want another, to prove your point.
I get the impression you're not a Walker fan.
Like Coldwater is not a Myers fan.
I also realize Safety would set Gutes draft.
But this draft has so many OL possibilities
to strengthen a team, why not gamble.
Coldworld
February 12, 2024 at 08:05 am
Walker I think was graded better than Broderick Johnson by many rating sources. Particularly in pass pro in what was effectively his rookie season and more so later in the year . Is Walker real? I wish I was certain, but he was good enough last year that he deserves not to be dismissed as some do.
We forget that he was a projected first rounder at one point before his final year. Play once in the league not pick number. Both Bakh and Tom should emphasize that.
Myers continues to be the weakest link. He’s just about adequate in a pinch. He’s got one season left on his rookie deal and grades out at a back up as perceived by every recognized rating source. He’s a guy you have to try and get better than after 3 years.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 11, 2024 at 03:37 pm
JL10'S footwork was fine in TC. He learned to have happy feet playing behind a leaky O line. He does need to reinforce good habits in the off-season, but if they give him a solid line he'll be fine. The whole offense will.
GPG!
jannesbjornson
February 12, 2024 at 09:25 pm
TC is not the intensity of the regular season facing pass rushers going 100%. They gave Nijman 4.3 M to ride the pine. Then swapped snaps with Walker. The continuity suffered. It seems Walker earned his spot, starting out roughly, getting victimized by Stunts and inside chops. I thought he would be the RT. Tom is a key player in the 2024 configuration. He is capable of playing LT if necessary with his agillty.
jurp
February 11, 2024 at 10:18 am
Another team that successfully replaced an excellent starting QB with another excellent starter is the Cowboys, replacing Don Meredith with Roger Staubach. Without the Packers being in the way, Meredith would've had two SB rings.
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 11:40 am
Yup, good point about Meredith and Aikman. I knew there had to be more, but my feeble memory could only come up with Montana and Young.
CoachJV
February 11, 2024 at 09:02 am
People who wanted us to tank just cannot be real football fans. You play to win... period.
I rather like the fact that JLove has a bit of Favre in him. It takes a lot of confidence to play with that kind of reckless abandon. And it's even better that it is tempered with a little Arod control... I think we're just fine at QB for the foreseeable future.
Bitternotsour
February 11, 2024 at 09:10 am
I think the Eli Manning comparison is a good one. Like Eli, the guy just seems immune to pressure. It's mind boggling, how much he looks like he's at practice or something, a Sunday game at the church yard.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 12, 2024 at 11:19 am
JL10's last throw was a panic, there's no other way it makes sense.
TheVOR
February 11, 2024 at 09:13 am
Pull our receipts of the Love Haters. Hate is a very strong word! You can dislike a football player without hating the football player. Objectively looking at the first half of the season it’s not unusual that fans would be looking ahead to something other than Jordan Love.
As for the whole series of 2 to 3 yard passes you were seeing in every game, everyone’s assumption is that that was somehow always Matt LeFleur. In my opinion, that is what I referred to as “ check down Sally” with quarterbacks that can’t read the field and take the easy out. Was he coached to check down and take the easy out and not make mistakes? Every quarterback is! It’s not necessarily on the coach that he was calling 2 to 3 yard passes 17 times a game, It was more than likely part of the growth process for the quarterback..
I was absolutely a doubter after eight games no question about that. I still think the second-half transformation was remarkable.. the one thing I always said about this young man is even if I didn’t like the player I did like this young man. He’s a compelling story came from a rough background and losing his dad, and battled against life in general to become what is today.
Finally, the one thing I really love about this player is not only how he was playing in the second half, but is his physical size at quarterback. 6’,5” tall is a huge asset to go along with the arm and the leadership. While I’d like to see another season before I start talking comparisons of Favre and Rodgers, we certainly have some excitement going into this off-season and then anticipating the 2024 regular season.
PhantomII
February 11, 2024 at 10:43 am
I saw an OL that sucked really bad. Injured RB1 and RB2 with no burst. WR's running around like barnyard chickens and a HC poorly calling plays, a soft defense giving up easy first downs. Position coaches looking bad at most positions.....We had a lot of youth in flux. It seems like the OL jelled...ML began calling plays that moved the ball down field as the OL was pass blocking better and the WR's light came on and were running the routes correctly-on time. I dogged every one of these aspects, but you know what.....Every one of these issues were addressed and improved upon until we had a TEAM executing at a high level. What impressed me the most is JL led offense worked better than the previous one. I remember a game we did not punt the ball once. Kudos to all for doing their jobs...learning the offense and executing it at a high level. We have unfinished business boys. GPG
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 10:47 am
LaFleur admitted he held back on the playbook. Love was in year four, he knew the offense. Watson was on the sidelines, A.Jones had the Hammy for a few games and the Greenhorns were learning how to run the route tree.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
February 11, 2024 at 09:45 am
Greg,
Your assessment of Jordan Love has been 'exactly' what I have been saying for a VERY LONG TIME NOW regarding Favre's game, Rodger's game, and how I see Jordan playing his game.
Nice article!
Leatherhead
February 11, 2024 at 10:34 am
If you assume, like I do,that the Packers organization knows what it's doing, then you'd assume that Love was going to be up to the job. And he was. And tanking, like some people here were calling for, wasn't on the table.
I'll watch SF and the Chiefs today, knowing that we're right there with them. This could have been us in the game today. Next year,we're going to be better.
PhantomII
February 11, 2024 at 10:49 am
I agree...except the trade sending our best CB to the Bills was a dumb move....He actually catches and makes pick sixes on a regular basis. Every once in a while Gute shocks me....not in a good way.
Bitternotsour
February 11, 2024 at 03:08 pm
Interesting take, what was our record again pre and post trade? Oh yeah, the team improved AFTER TRADING RASUL.
Take that assessment down the road. 5 picks in the top 100. It's showtime.
Leatherhead
February 11, 2024 at 04:08 pm
That’s an uncomfortable fact.
PhantomII
February 11, 2024 at 10:24 pm
The OL improved pass and run blocking...the WR's caught the ball and ran the right routes and the RB got healthy after the trade. Maybe players got together and figured out IF they traded their best CB away for a bag of chips...they might be next if they didn't get their stuff together. Rasul is 2nd in the league in INT's with a pick 6 and 17 passes defensed, an 82.2 PFF grade. He was not the problem and opened a hole in our secondary we have not filled with equal quality player and will likely not in the draft either especially how GB slow rolls draft picks. Yours is the interesting take as it was still a dumb thing to do with your all pro CB hurt. GB does not draft DB's well at all so if you get a good one off another teams practice squad, you should keep them. We traded our best healthy CB who should have been our current free Safety because he is good at being a ball hawk and we gave away a 5th round pick as well. Gute has 1 good 3rd round draft pick in his tenure. We made the weakest part of our defense even weaker....Yes that makes this move dumb....and that's being nice.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
February 11, 2024 at 12:10 pm
LH,
I agree! However, with all the holes in roster and a new DC Gutey really has his work cut out for him this year. Where is he going to assign assets in draft and free agency, resigning some players, releasing older more expensive vets. It really is a chess game which makes it so fun. Why for a number of years I have repeatedly said Gutey is the most important person with the organization.
Get it right!
Leatherhead
February 11, 2024 at 02:21 pm
Knock! Good to hear from you.
I think the focus is always about building strength instead of patching holes. Some people really seem to believe it’s possible to have above average players at every position. I don’t. But your strengths can compensate for things. 30ppg on offense compensates for problems on defense.
Bitternotsour
February 11, 2024 at 03:11 pm
30 PPG also lends to my personal entertainment. I want entertaining football that pleases the eye. Investing in the offense will contribute to that.
ricky
February 11, 2024 at 10:35 am
Late in Rodgers' career in Green Bay, when he was more of a diva and less of a team player, there were a fair number of people who were wondering what the Packers offense would look like if the QB actually listened to Lafleur, and executed his vision. Enter Love. Though there was pain during the early part of the season, especially with the WR's running wrong routes and dropping passes, Love never seemed to get rattled or impatient. Then, once the two groups began to gel, LaFleur opened the playbook to allow for more creativity, the receivers were getting open on correct routes, and Love was consistently getting them the ball. And the offense crackled, especially with the return of Jones at RB. But though there were doubters, it seems the majority of fans just wanted to see Love improve as the season progressed. So far, so good.
SSJ
February 11, 2024 at 10:52 am
Love reminds me of a younger and less experienced Mahomes. He may not end up being as good or win as many Super Bowls as Mahomes but there is a resemblance.
jannesbjornson
February 11, 2024 at 10:59 am
Mahomes has a defense to protect a lead.
Guam
February 11, 2024 at 11:42 am
This year. Not so much in a couple of prior years.
Duneslick
February 11, 2024 at 12:11 pm
Okay what about the question no news journalist will ask. Would GB beaten the 49ers with Rasul Douglass
Qoojo
February 11, 2024 at 12:24 pm
Towards the end of that game, the packers front 7 was exhausted and they had zero pass rush. Without decent pressure, most DBs will eventually be toast. Since defense had plenty of issues with Douglass around, I doubt he would have been the difference. Don't forget that part of the reason for losing was offense mistakes and failing to make easy plays.
I was surprised at how tired the defense looked.
The two dropped INTs stand out too. You have to make those.
SicSemperTyrannis
February 12, 2024 at 07:12 pm
Oodles of mistakes and missed opportunities. Still winning until the final 52 seconds, that's much better than I ever imagined.
Bitternotsour
February 11, 2024 at 03:14 pm
You know what Rasul is doing this weekend? Yeah, me neither. He didn't propel the Bills to the Super Bowl, did he.
Let that go. We got a third and cap relief for a player that we couldn't afford in 2024.
Cheddarhed
February 11, 2024 at 12:42 pm
It would be nice to play more football and less about padding of egos. A QB that uses all his weapons instead of only trusting a few. Throwing into double and triple coverage, when he has a guy wide open down the middle. Sometimes you have to take a few chances to receive some gain. I never got down on Love, I said lets give him the season then pass judgement. Just enjoy the ride for now.
Remember it's not how you start sometimes it's how you finish. And I'm also excited about a 4-3 Defense.
splitpea1
February 11, 2024 at 12:43 pm
Yes, the calm demeanor should serve Love well during his career. He never seems to get to high or too low, at least as of yet. Once he gains more experience, I would expect him to maybe develop a slightly more assertive leadership style.
We all loved Favre, but his appetite for risk-taking never diminished even as he closed out his career with other teams. Those interceptions he threw in NFC title games with both us and the Vikings were absolutely brutal--you wondered how the hell he could it, especially late in the game when you absolutely couldn't afford to.
Hopefully a couple of those ill-advised throws Love made can be chalked up to rookie, or rather, first-year exuberance. I'm not ready to make any comparisons at this point anyway, but just content for Love to develop in his own way--which will hopefully lead us to the promised land combined with (here we go again) a defense that can get the job done during the latter stages of playoff games.