What Packers player Jordan Love improved in the offseason

Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers enjoyed a resurgent second half of the 2023 season that culminated in a playoff win over the favored Dallas Cowboys before taking it all in a 24-21 loss to the eventual NFC champion 49ers in the divisional round. Love and the team had some very specific goals for improvement this offseason as they look to build on that success.

In an article published Monday, ESPN’s Rob Demovsky explained why the Packers worked to improve Love’s footwork and fundamentals after his first season as a full-time starting quarterback in the NFL.

“Love completed just 40.6% of his passes under pressure last season and averaged just 4.7 yards per attempt, according to ESPN Stats & Information,” Demovsky said. “Those numbers rank 27th and 26th, respectively, among NFL quarterbacks.”

Love, a 2020 first-round draft pick, spent most of his first three professional seasons as a backup behind future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers. He eventually took the reins in 2023 after Green Bay traded Rodgers to the New York Jets. According to Pro-Football-Reference, Love finished last season ranked ninth in the NFL with an adjusted QBR of 62.1 and ninth with a pass success rate of 47.6%.

“You would expect the defense to maybe apply a little more pressure, camouflage a little more, make it harder to see where to run,” quarterbacks coach Tom Clements said of preparing Love for what he might expect from opponents this season. “I mean, that was one of (Rodgers’) best traits, he could process information very quickly and usually make the right decision and get the ball where he needed to go. That’s something we’ll have to see how the defense handles it, but you have to be prepared for that.”

Love could become an unrestricted free agent after the upcoming season, but his 2025 rights could remain with the Packers even beyond the franchise tag. By most accounts, the Green Bay Packers will try to avoid such potential headaches by signing Love to a contract extension before the start of the 2024 season.

As much as Love has impressed in the second half of the 2023 season, it’s clear that Clements and head coach Matt LaFleur want to see more consistency from the fifth-year pro, who could be a much richer young man come summer.