The Packers spent a first-round pick on Jordan Love (and traded up to do so) last year, but how committed are they to him?
It was shocking when the Green Bay Packers traded up in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft and took Utah State’s, Jordan Love. Not only did they spend their first-round pick on a quarterback, but they did so despite needing to address several other positions.
The Packers obviously hoped this would play out in similar fashion to when the Patriots spent a second-round pick on Jimmy Garoppolo. They did it because Tom Brady was getting older and they wanted to have a backup plan in-house. Well, Brady continued to keep the job and kept winning Super Bowls and Garoppolo was eventually dealt to the 49ers.
The Packers are currently seeing this somewhat play out the same way, as Aaron Rodgers was more motivated than ever this past year and ended up winning the NFL MVP award after throwing for 4,299 yards, 48 touchdowns, and just five interceptions.
Meanwhile, rookie Jordan Love never even dressed for a game. He served as the third-string quarterback behind Rodgers and Tim Boyle.
With Rodgers still playing well, it makes sense that the Packers would want to keep him in Green Bay. They’ve said to be in discussions with him about restructuring his contract, which could be to save money to bring in other players (though reportedly, it wasn’t). It could also be a sign that maybe they’re not ready to throw Love to the deep end quite yet.
The problem here is that the Packers are losing time on Love’s rookie contract. The most desirable place for an NFL team to be is when they have a young dynamic quarterback on a rookie-deal so that they can afford to bring other players in. Green Bay hasn’t gotten to benefit from this yet due to Love not even playing in an NFL game.
What is the Packers’ plan for Jordan Love moving forward?
At this point, Green Bay has at least three years left on Love’s rookie contract and could potentially have a fourth-year if they exercise his fifth-year option. If Rodgers has another incredible season in 2021, the Packers could either continue to keep him around, or they could hand the keys of the car to Love and see if he’s the next guy for the Pack.
The decision to trade up and draft Jordan Love was a puzzling one at the time and the Packers have continued to make it a baffling choice with the way they’ve handled the situation. Maybe we see another Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers situation play out where Rodgers sticks around for several more years while Love waits his turn.
The problem is that the Packers won’t have Love on that rookie deal for long, so they need to decide what the end game is here.