There is a lot of mystery and intrigue surrounding the Green Bay Packers as they head toward the 2023 season. It is anyone’s guess how the team will perform as there isn’t much of a track record to go off of at multiple key positions.
The defense will be the backbone of this team, at least in the early going, but questions remain there as well. The health of Rashan Gary is on the minds of everyone as he remains without a timetable to get back on the field. The team needs to figure things out at the safety position and get better at stopping the run as well if they want to rise the ranks as a unit.
Offensively, however, is where most people will be giving their attention. With Aaron Rodgers no longer the team’s starter, all eyes will be on Jordan Love. The 2020 first-round pick out of Utah State has immense pressure on him this season taking for a legendary player.
It should come as no surprise then that Love was selected by Jared Dubin of CBS Sports as the Packers’ biggest X-Factor on offense for the 2023 season. This team will go as far as he can take them in his first season as the starter.
“We all know what happened the last time a late first-round pick sat for three years and then stepped into the lineup to replace a living legend who had an acrimonious divorce from the Packers. That player himself became a living legend and in time repeated the exact same cycle in almost exactly the same way. If Jordan Love comes anywhere close to replicating Aaron Rodgers‘ career path, the Packers will be over the moon. The first step is to just be a competent or better starter, though, and earn himself another year in the role. With one of the league’s youngest and least-experienced skill position corps, there’s going to be a lot of pressure on Love to deliver the results on the strength of his own talent right away.”
There isn’t a single wide receiver on the depth chart with more than one year of NFL experience. That is something the Packers should look to change in the coming weeks not only to help that group develop but so Love has a reliable veteran that he can turn to in a pinch.
Luckily for the Packers, they do have a very strong running game that they can lean on in the early going. Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon are capable workhorses that should receive plenty of work as Love gets acclimated to his new role.