Concern inside the Green Bay Packers organization rose last weekend when back-up quarterback Jordan Love went down with an apparent shoulder injury. After a strip sack put him on the ground, the second-year player was forced to leave the team’s opening preseason game against the Houston Texans.
Although Love’s MRI results came back most positive, the Packers won’t push him to come back too quickly.
Head coach Matt LaFleur shared that it’s “unlikely” that the 2020 first-round pick will play on Saturday in Green Bay’s second preseason game against the New York Jets. In his absence, 26-year-old Kurt Benkert will get the start, per The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman.
The Packers seem to be extra cautious with Love at this stage of the preseason and for good reason. The 22-year-old appears to be the team’s No. 2 quarterback headed in the fall and will be needed if anything happens to 2020 MVP Aaron Rodgers.
Jordan Love is “unlikely” to play Saturday against the Jets, Matt LaFleur says. Kurt Benkert would start.
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) August 19, 2021
Love played well in the first half of last weekend’s game against the Texans before he left with the shoulder injury. He went 12 of 17 for 122 yards and a touchdown, but he did lose a fumble. With Rodgers not dressed for the game, the former first-round pick stepped up and showed off his skills.
Despite his strong showing, Love reportedly hasn’t “wowed” the Packers just yet. The team feels that the 22-year-old still has much to improve upon if he figures to be the franchise quarterback in Green Bay after Rodgers retires.
“Jordan Love, the pivot-point first-round pick of all the discontent, hasn’t wowed the team,” Peter King wrote in his latest Football Morning in America column. “Good days, shaky days. But I’d be cautious about saying the 26th pick in the 2020 draft is in trouble… Love’s decision-making must improve. But some quarterbacks take more nurturing than others. One of the biggest problems in football today is impatience with young quarterbacks, and I got the sense the Packers think Love’s not ready for prime time yet.”
Once Love comes back fully from the injury, he’ll try to prove to the Packers that he’s worth the first-round pick they spent on him in 2020.
The post Packers Update Jordan Love’s Status For Saturday’s Game appeared first on The Spun.
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