Friday was an enormous day for NFL quarterbacks in search of extensions. First, Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins inked a four-year, $212.4 million extension. Then Jordan Love got here out and topped it. The Inexperienced Bay Packers are signing Like to a four-year extension price $220 million, per CBS Sports activities lead NFL insider Jonathan Jones. Love now ties Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow in being the highest-paid quarterback within the NFL at $55 million per yr.
Jones provides that Love will get a $75 million signing bonus, the biggest in NFL historical past, with $160.3 million of the contract assured. ESPN stories that the contract comes with $155 million in new full ensures, and that Love shall be 30 when he is allowed to hit free company.
The 25-year-old began gradual with 14 touchdowns to 10 interceptions because the Packers went 3-6 in Love’s first 9 begins of 2023, his first season as Inexperienced Bay’s beginning quarterback, however he caught hearth throughout the second half of the season, throwing 23 touchdowns to solely three interceptions, together with the postseason. Love’s 32 regular-season touchdowns passes ranked because the second most within the NFL behind solely Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s 36.
Jordan Love 2023 season (together with playoffs)
|
W-L |
3-6 |
7-3 |
|
Comp Pct |
58.7% |
69.8% |
|
Move YPG |
223.2 |
261.6 |
|
TD-INT |
14-10 |
23-3 |
|
Passer Ranking |
80.5 |
112.1 |
The 2020 first-round decide additionally grew to become solely the fifth participant in NFL historical past to throw for over 4,000 yards (4,159) and over 30 touchdowns (32) in his first season as a full-time NFL beginning quarterback.
Gamers with 30 move TD and 4,000 move yards in first season as full-time starter (NFL historical past):
* Full-time starter = began no less than 50% of staff video games
** Professional Soccer Corridor of Famer
The spotlight of Love’s 2023 marketing campaign got here within the seventh-seeded Packers’ 48-32 demolition of the second-seeded Dallas Cowboys within the NFC wild-card spherical of the playoffs, by which he performed practically good soccer. Love set Inexperienced Bay’s postseason single-game passer ranking document (157.2) and passing yards-per-attempt document (13) after throwing for 272 yards and three touchdowns whereas finishing 16 of his 21 move makes an attempt.
“Man, Jordan Love. Wow. That is about all I can say, is wow,” LaFleur stated postgame that day. “What he did, the poise he exhibits, the command he exhibits. The landing move to Dontayvion Wicks. We have been clearly in an empty set. He had, I feel it was (tight finish) Tucker (Kraft), max shield. It was an awesome job by Tuck and the remainder of our offensive line. And for him to hold in there and get that throw. Wicks made a hell of a catch. These are issues that, you possibly can attempt to coach it, however what a second for him. To me, that was an enormous time play. It simply exhibits the expansion that he is had from his first begin versus KC to now. I am simply so proud and joyful for him. He’s, he is a dude. He is an actual dude.”
All of Love’s manufacturing got here whereas throwing to the most efficient, younger group of pass-catchers since no less than 1970 because the Packers’ 302 catches, 3,642 receiving yards and 31 receiving touchdowns are all probably the most by a staff’s group of first- or second-year pass-catchers because the AFL/NFL merger. Inexperienced Bay’s 2023 squad additionally grew to become the youngest staff in that very same span, since 1970, to win a playoff recreation with a mean age of 25 years and 214 days.
The Packers practically knocked off the NFC’s top-seeded San Francisco 49ers as properly within the NFC Divisional Spherical, however a missed area objective late offered San Francisco with the sphere place and time to march down the sphere for the go-ahead landing. Love threw a cross-body interception on a desperation heave on the ultimate drive, which resulted in a 24-21 loss.
Gutekunst has continued to beef up the Packers roster round Love this offseason whereas concurrently making certain his staff stays simply as younger or youthful than it’s was in 2023. He changed longtime beginning operating again Aaron Jones with former Raiders Professional Bowler Josh Jacobs (4 years, $48 million), signed the highest free agent security Xavier McKinney (4 years, $67 million) and chosen Arizona left sort out Jordan Morgan twenty fifth total within the 2024 NFL Draft to exchange the oft-injured All-Professional left sort out David Bakhtiari. Inexperienced Bay additionally changed defensive coordinator Joe Berry, who ran a extra passive, zone-heavy scheme, with Boston Faculty head coach Jeff Hafley, who runs a extra aggressive, press man coverage-style protection.
The Packers practically knocked off the eventual NFC champion in Love’s first go-around because the staff’s beginning quarterback, however they did win a playoff recreation in his first yr as a starter, one thing Inexperienced Bay did not do in every of Aaron Rodgers’ first two seasons operating the present in 2008 or 2009. Nonetheless, Rodgers helped energy the Packers to a Tremendous Bowl XLV title in his third season underneath middle in 2010. As of now, Love is forward of schedule from his four-time NFL MVP predecessor’s profession arc with the total backing from the NFL’s winningest franchise (13 NFL championships) that he can at some point additionally assist deliver the Vince Lombardi Trophy again dwelling to Inexperienced Bay.
Normal supervisor Brian Gutekunst put his soccer future on the road by buying and selling up within the 2020 NFL Draft to pick Love twenty sixth total after a Rodgers-led Packers squad reached the NFC Championship recreation in head coach Matt LaFleur’s first season with the staff in 2019.
Gutekunst’s gamble has clearly paid off.