Our Packers beat reporters answer 4 burning questions ahead of the Jordan Love era in Green Bay
GREEN BAY − The Green Bay Packers launch a new era in franchise history on Sunday when they visit the Chicago Bears. While the Packers have had a run of Hall of Fame-worthy quarterback play since 1992 with two players, the Bears have started dozens in that time, none of whom will be considered for Canton. So, as the Jordan Love era starts, signaling a renewal at the quarterback position as well as the youngest roster in the NFL, we asked our PackersNews.
com beat reporters to weigh in on how this season might turn out. Will Jordan Love have a better or worse quarterback rating than Aaron Rodgers had (93. 8) in his first season as a starter? Pete Dougherty: Worse.
The best guess is Love’s passer rating will be slightly worse than Rodgers’ in ‘08. Love probably won’t throw as much as Rodgers did because coach Matt LaFleur will run the ball more than Mike McCarthy, and Love will probably throw as many interceptions (13) as Rodgers did his first year as starter. Kassidy Hill: Better.
Rodgers finished his first season sixth in the league in QB rating, a testament to being in the top eight in passing yards, completions and touchdowns, but also interceptions. Having high marks in all of those categories, even interceptions as passers figure out windows, can be promising for a first-year starter. Love has shown a willingness in camp to test the deep ball, but also take a check down when open.
This offense will be predicated on having options for short chunks, so while Love might not light up the scoreboard in total yards like Rodgers, he has a good chance to finish with a better completion percentage and fewer interceptions. Tom Silverstein: Worse. I don't expect it to be better.
I think there will be games when he isn't called upon to throw 30 times or get eight to 10 plays in the red zone that give him touchdown opportunities. I think there will be less pressure on him to put up big numbers this season than there might have been on Rodgers. Ryan Wood: Better.
I know it sounds sacrilege, but Rodgers’ rookie season was a different time. Rodgers ranked eighth in passer rating in 2008. Only one quarterback (Philip Rivers) had a passer rating over 100.
Seven qualifying quarterbacks reached triple digits last season. Love might not hit that number this fall, but he’ll benefit from the inflation. Which returning player will have the biggest breakthrough season? Pete Dougherty: Devonte Wyatt.
He didn’t play much as a rookie until Dean Lowry got hurt late in the year, and when his snap count went up he played fairly well. Then, he looked like a different player in camp than a year ago. Kassidy Hill: Keisean Nixon.
He is going to have two opportunities to be an impact player. He's back as the league's best kick returner. Teams will kick away from him, but he has an affinity to go after the ball and make something happen.
He'll also be the starting nickel corner, where he'll play significantly more snaps. Nixon can play sideline-to-sideline and is a missile to the ball. Tom Silverstein: Romeo Doubs.
I think Doubs will have a more productive season than most people expect. As impressive as Christian Watson can be, Doubs has more of a connection with Love and he's going to be his favorite receiver on third down. He'll benefit from the attention given to Watson as well.
But he should be the team's leading receiver. Ryan Wood: Romeo Doubs. He might not seem like a breakthrough candidate after a solid rookie season, but Doubs looked like Love’s go-to target throughout the offseason.
If he stays healthy, he should post significantly better numbers than his 42 catches for 425 yards and three touchdowns from last year. Which rookie will have the biggest impact this season? Pete Dougherty: Luke Musgrave. He's the best bet to have the best year among the rookies.
He’s going to be a starter and play a lot, he’s big and fast, and LaFleur likes to make use of the tight end position. Kassidy Hill: Luke Musgrave. By default, it'll be Musgrave who is going to be the starting tight end in an offense that relies heavily on the position.
Musgrave is still searching for consistency, which is expected of a rookie. But his combination of speed and size is special. He can be a weapon in the middle of the field.
Tom Silverstein: Luke Musgrave. If he stays healthy, he's going to give the offense something it has lacked for a long time, which is a threat down the middle of the field. Jayden Reed may wind up providing that more, but Musgrave has the size, speed combination that will make him a good matchup against linebackers and safeties.
Ryan Wood: Luke Musgrave. It’s a gamble predicting a rookie tight end to have a big first season in the NFL. That isn’t normal for a position that traditionally faces one of the steepest transitions from college football.
Musgrave landed on a team with a head coach who loves tight ends, his speed and size are unique in the Packers offense, and a lack of depth at the position should afford plenty of patience as a rookie. Over/under on Packers wins: 9. 5.
Pete Dougherty: Under. Love overall had a solid camp, but it’s hard not to think he’s going to make some game-costing mistakes, and not come through late in a couple of games. That’s almost inevitable with a first-year starting quarterback.
Kassidy Hill: Under. I'm going to say it's eight wins, maybe nine. They have a favorable schedule, but there are just as many unknowns about opponents as there are about the Packers.
What will Desmond Ridder and the Falcons be? With almost a full season under his belt, could Bryce Young and the Panthers be a tough December draw? Can Sean Payton turn around Russell Wilson? And with no clear powerhouse in the NFC North, they might just sneak in to the playoffs as a wild card with nine wins. Anything above six wins, though, should be considered a solid start for Love's first year. More: Brian Gutekunst Q&A: Packers GM talks about Jordan Love, an inconsistent defense and whether they can win the North Tom Silverstein: Over.
I think 10 victories is reasonable. This is a team that went 13-3 three straight seasons under LaFleur. If it can't win 10 games this year, then that's on him.
It's not just Love's team. His job is to show he can win with the next quarterback, and winning 10 games should be the expectation not the hope. Ryan Wood: Under.
My expectations have risen slightly after watching Love have a promising training camp, but not that much. He’s still a rookie quarterback, and anything beyond nine wins seems unrealistic for a team clearly in rebuild mode for future seasons. .