Greg Jennings and Trey Wingo wonder if Sunday night’s loss to the Lions was Aaron Rodgers‘ final game for the Packers. If so, what could the trade market for the veteran quarterback look like?
The Green Bay Packers play the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night, and if I’m Jordan Love, standing on the sideline and watching Aaron Rodgers take all the snaps, I’m wondering why I am not in the game.
The Packers are 5-8. They’re not going to make the playoffs. Rodgers hasn’t been healthy most of the season. If I’m Love, I’m simply wondering, “When am I going to get my opportunity?” And I’m going to call my agent at the end of the season and demand a trade.
Reportedly, he’s already noodling on that idea, but I’ll get to that later.
If I’m Love, I’m thinking, “I’ve been in the league three years. I’ve only thrown the ball 80 times in three seasons for the Green Bay Packers. And remember, I was a first-round draft pick.”
Love has been impressive in his limited game action this season. In Green Bay’s Week 12 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, he nearly led a fourth-quarter comeback after completing 6-of-9 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown. In Week 1, he completed 4-of-5 passes for 65 yards. Although it’s a small sample size, Love has a 119.2 passer rating and an 86.2 QBR this season.
Packers brass has already seen enough from Love to make a decision in the offseason on picking up the quarterback’s fifth-year option and establishing his presence on the roster in 2024. That deadline is May 1. The guaranteed price tag on the option: $19.8 million.
“We’re really pleased with his progression, and what he’s been able to do,” GM Brian Gutekunst told reporters on Dec. 5. “I think it would be really good for him, the growth that you need to go through. Seeing things for the first time. Making the mistakes that you need to make. But I think from our end of it, we’ve seen what we need to see.”
It must be a frustrating time for the young quarterback because he’s in a bad situation. He’s playing behind arguably one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game. Rodgers has won a Super Bowl for the Packers and just signed a new three-year megadeal that pays him an average of $50 million per year through 2024.
I can’t imagine Rodgers is going to walk away after the season. I know for certain he doesn’t want his career to end on a losing note. He will want to come back and give it one more try to put the Packers in the postseason and have a chance to really cap off his career with another Super Bowl run.
Gutekunst is on record, as recently as two weeks ago, saying he wants Rodgers back next season, which puts Love in an awkward predicament, and one that would naturally lead to a trade request.
Asked by Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journal if he would be willing to sit for another year behind Rodgers, Love replied: “That’s something me and my agent will talk about. We’ll figure that out.”
If you’re Love, entering 2023 behind Rodgers, you’re still not getting reps. You’re not getting opportunities. You already played three years behind a quarterback who has been pretty healthy and durable throughout his career, and I wouldn’t see a light at the end of the tunnel.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Love does demand a trade at the end of the year. There are a lot of teams out there who will be in the quarterback market in 2023.
Who knows? Jordan Love might be available.
Greg Jennings says the Green Bay Packers‘ season is over despite not being officially eliminated. Aaron Rodgers might want to finish the season out, but Green Bay needs to figure out what they have in Jordan Love so they can assess what value he holds. On the flip side, Jennings argues the Chicago Bears need to commit to improving Justin Fields’ pocket presence. Both teams should be more focused on 2023 than 2022 at this point.
Marc Trestman thinks if Aaron Rodgers is healthy enough to play, then there is no reason to start Jordan Love. Rodgers has proven he is still an elite QB, and as long as he is on the field, there is hope for the Packers and their players. Until the Packers are mathematically eliminated, Green Bay should stick with their quarterback because he is still committed to the team and helping them win.
With nothing left to play for in 2022, Trey Wingo explains why it’s time to start Jordan Love at QB in Green Bay.
Eric Mangini and Chuck Pagano explain how the Packers should handle their current quarterback situation. Unless Aaron Rodgers retires, he’s entrenched as Green Bay’s starter. But now is the time to evaluate Jordan Love as a potential future starter, that is, if they have Rodgers’ ‘buy-in.’
Ryan Reynolds and Chris Farley react to the Week 12 results, name the teams that stood out, and list teams you may want to consider fading. They also provide some lookahead picks for Week 13.
An oblique injury knocked Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers out of their Week 12 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, bringing in 2020 first-round pick Jordan Love to finish the loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Whether Rodgers is healthy for Week 13 or misses time, with Green Bay’s playoff hopes almost evaporated and six games left in the season, it’s time for the Packers to give Love the starting job, and see what they have in the young passer.
