If 2023 was the build-up, 2024 should be the takeoff season for Jordan Love.
The former first-round pick blossomed down the back half of the 2023 campaign, powering a surprise run to the Divisional Round of the playoffs for the upstart Packers. After dodging years of questions of whether Love could be the true successor to Aaron Rodgers, the Utah State quarterback answered those questions in resounding fashion, positioning Green Bay as a favorite to return to the playoffs and wreak some postseason havoc in 2024.
Love's timeline, however, has made for an interesting contractual situation for the Packers. Because Green Bay selected Love and sat him behind Rodgers for three years, it robbed itself of a chance to ride with a young quarterback on a rookie deal. The 2024 season will be Love's second as a full-time starter, but fifth on the Packers' payroll, the final year of a one-year extension to his four-year rookie contract. It's time for Green Bay to again extend Love -- whose representation informed the Packers he won't practice until a deal is done -- and it sounds as if it could happen soon.
"Yeah, I think so, but again you never know. We're working really hard to get that done," Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said Monday. "I think it's really important for us. At the same time, the thing that I have confidence in is that we both want the same thing. We want Jordan here for a long time, give him that stability for him, and it gives us some stability for our group as well. … I'm optimistic. These are big deals. It takes time. They're not as easy as some people may think. ...
"I feel we're close, but no real timetables as far as how long it's going to take."
The quarterback market has remained active in 2024. Trevor Lawrence and Jared Goff each received contracts that will pay them $53 million or more per year, and Miami's Tua Tagovailoa is still waiting on his own extension.
Despite a lack of multi-year success as a starter, Love's contract could end up in such a range. It's often how business is conducted in the NFL, especially at the game's most important position, where the player often holds most of the leverage in negotiations.
Love is exercising such leverage by protecting his greatest asset -- his health -- and sitting out until a deal is done. It just might expedite the process, especially because it's wiser to pay a budding star earlier rather than later.
"I think it was Saturday night they kind of informed us that until we get something done that he would not practice," Gutekunst explained. "Again, until something gets done before practice starts here pretty soon, he will not be practicing. But again, I think this is something we're all working on.
"We certainly understand where he's coming from. We'd like him to be out there. It's important for him to be out there. … But as of now, until we get that resolved, he will not be practicing. He'll be taking part in… He reported last week, he's taking part in everything else."
Love's 2023 ascension wasn't a fluke, but an example of how one team's trust in its process can produce fantastic results. Green Bay has no reason to expect anything other than more success from its quarterback in the years ahead, giving them more than enough confidence to work out a new deal.
Now, it's a matter of working out numbers with a sense of urgency.
