The Green Bay Packers have a few players that are facing some pressure heading into the 2023 season. Quarterback Jordan Love tops the list, but he is far from alone in facing it. Some, such as safety Darnell Savage Jr., are looking to regain the form they showed earlier in their career after a rough 2022 season.
Others, such as Devonte Wyatt and Quay Walker, are looking to live up to the hype of being a first-round pick and fulfill those expectations. Alas, none are facing what the Packers’ new signal caller is about to take on.
That is why it should come as no surprise that Bill Barnwell of ESPN selected Jordan Love as one of his top 20 players facing the most pressure heading into the 2023 season. There are plenty of factors playing into landing on the list, with arguably the biggest one being the void he has to attempt to fill.
Jordan Love is taking over for future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers, who took over for Hall of Famer Brett Favre. There is a quarterback legacy in Green Bay that is on the line as the team has had elite production for nearly three decades; can Jordan Love carry that torch?
The odds in some regards are certainly stacked against him. The Packers have the second-youngest group of wide receivers and tight ends since 19990. Not a single wide receiver has more than one season of NFL experience under their belt.
Jordan Love’s reps are lacking as well, as he has made 10 appearances, with one start, and attempted 83 passes in his first three seasons in the NFL. On top of that, the current quarterback depth chart is the least experience the NFL has seen since 2008, which was when Rodgers took over for Favre.
Some of the pressure to perform right away was taken off of Jordan Love when he agreed to a contract extension, which essentially replaced his fifth-year option. But, he isn’t going to have the longest leash to prove that this job should be his long-term, so he needs to hit the ground running.
A losing record doesn’t necessarily eliminate him from keeping the job long-term; Rodgers did go 6-10 in his first season. But, if the Packers do struggle and they finish near the bottom of the league, it will be hard to ignore the temptation of taking one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft.
