Packers Aaron Rodgers may have merely been a joint owner of the Chicago Bears, it turns out. Jordan Love seems to have taken something with him when he left Soldier Field.
Packers fresh quarterback for the Green Bay Packers. The gloomy Bears are the same.
Love started his tenure in a similar manner to how Aaron Rodgers did following another Packers victory over their NFC North opponents on the same field two years prior: “I still own you.”
The first contest after Rodgers ended with a 38-20 triumph that delivered a clear message.
Running back Aaron Jones stated that “nothing has changed.” We’re still the Packers, I suppose.
Regardless of whether Love has a 15-year streak left in him to follow 30 years of Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre, the Packers are now his to lose. He had to wait three years to prove it, but for at least one day, he vindicated general manager Brian Gutekunst’s risky decision to trade up and choose a quarterback in the first round of the 2020 selection.
The Packers defeated the Bears for the ninth time in a row, but the victory felt much more significant.
As Packers coach Matt LaFleur noted, “Jordan Love has a big-time following in that locker room.” “I hope the boys will come together to support him. For him, they’re thrilled. They are devoted to him. He is revered among them. Every day he shows up at work with a positive mood and lots of energy. That, I believe, you observed today.
Additionally, it could be heard from behind the Packers’ locker room doors. When Love was given the game ball, there was a cheer.
After serving as a backup for three years, Love stated, “It’s definitely been a long time coming for me.” “Coming out with a dub is just what we wanted,” the leader of the group said. “Just watching, learning, and growing, seeing this teamwork, it feels good to be out there leading those guys and be out there playing with them finally.”
With a scoring drive on the first possession, Love initially made it look simple. Romeo Doubs was open because of his double pump, which he used with patience while in the pocket before being hit on a crosser for an 8-yard touchdown.
After that, it appeared to be a battle. At the half, the score was 10-6.
The offense then appeared to be typical of LaFleur. Jones completed a 51-yard catch and run after being the recipient of a deceptive screen ball, capping the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. On a fourth-and-3 play, the Packers were up 24-6 when Jones grabbed an option route for a 35-yard touchdown.
A superbly timed 4-yard fade for Doubs’ second touchdown gave the quarterback his third score and a 31-14 advantage. This occurred after the only serious concern about Love, who fumbled a snap but recovered and connected rookie tight end Luke Musgrave for a 37-yard pass. He was the first quarterback to throw three touchdown passes up to that point in Week 1 of the NFL season.
Love completed 15 of 27 throws for 245 yards without committing a turnover, with a significant help from Jones, who had 127 yards and two scores on 13 receptions before a tight hamstring ended his day.
Left guard Elgton Jenkins remarked, “I told him that I think he’s going to go for 300 with three touchdowns, but he went for [almost] 250 with three touchdowns.” We’ll accept it, though.
They were without Christian Watson, who was possibly their most explosive receiver. LaFleur may have shut down Jones early because he was sidelined with a hamstring ailment, despite the fact that Jones claimed he could have kept playing.
Love was especially effective on third and fourth downs when it mattered most, going 8 of 10 times and converting seven of those into first downs.
Jenkins opined, “I think he can be a top-five quarterback. Jordan can absolutely be one of those people, however I’m usually upbeat about my teammates.
On Sunday, 1-0 was the only statistic that actually counted for Love.
Rodgers has a dismal 24-5 record versus the Bears, but as CB Jaire Alexander put it, “[The] Pack is back.”
Or maybe it was always there simply because Rodgers departed the area for the New York Jets.
The day before, Love admitted, “I was definitely picturing just winning and leaving the field with a victory; I kept telling myself, ‘I’m going to play great, we’re all going to play great.'” “I kept repeating that to myself over and over. And I did the same thing when I woke up today, simply imagining that we would win this game and perform well.