Jordan Love is unfazed by the prospect of teams having a full season of his game film to scrutinize. As the Green Bay Packers’ starting quarterback heads into his second year, he remains confident in both his abilities and the support of his coaching staff to counter defensive adjustments.
Facing Defensive Adjustments
The Philadelphia Eagles and other NFL teams will undoubtedly be pouring over Love's 19 starts from last season, looking to devise strategies to limit his effectiveness. Love himself acknowledges that defenses will have a better understanding of what worked well for him and the Packers last year. However, he believes in the prowess of head coach Matt LaFleur and his staff to keep him and the team in optimal positions.
"We know going into this year teams are going to have a better feel of what we do, what we did good," Love said. "That's their job -- to try to figure out how to stop that."
Despite the inevitable defensive counters, Love finds excitement in the challenge. "That's the fun part about the NFL," he added. "At the end of the day, we've got a very good coaching staff that's going to put us in the best position. We'll also be able to adjust to what defenses might be doing and taking away from us, and we'll learn on the fly."
Coaching and Development
Tom Clements, renowned for his work with quarterbacks, is instrumental in helping Love refine the skills necessary to navigate evolving defensive schemes. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has also made strategic changes in practice to support Love's growth, such as incorporating a 7-on-7 period—an element he had previously avoided due to its lack of realistic game conditions.
LaFleur emphasized technical fundamentals, particularly footwork and progression: "What we're making a big emphasis on is [having] perfect feet. Making sure the guys go through their progressions, having perfect feet. When they're not, they hear about it."
Clements and the offensive staff are meticulously planning for defensive adjustments. "You might anticipate a defense maybe bringing a little more pressure," Clements explained. "Disguising a little bit more, making it more difficult to see where to go. If that happens, you have to have a lot of film study and be able to react."
Performance Under Pressure
Last season, Love faced some challenges under pressure, ranking 27th and 26th among NFL quarterbacks in certain metrics. He often opted to throw deep away from coverage, a strategy that resulted in only one interception while under pressure. To address this, Love has been diligently working on his pocket awareness and movement.
"The biggest thing for me is just staying poised in the pocket," Love noted. "Being able to stay balanced in the pocket. Sometimes I get out of whack with my feet, and I might start drifting in the pocket too much. Just pocket awareness, making smaller moves and understanding when I've got to get out of there."
Adapting to Change
Love has made significant strides in his ability to adapt and make plays on the move, an evolution noticed by Clements especially toward the end of last season. "Early in the season, when Jordan scrambled, I'd say 95 percent of the time he ran the ball," Clements recalled. "Second half of the year, that maybe flipped—maybe not 95 percent but a larger percentage he was moving around, looking to throw the ball downfield."
Love's improvement in making plays while on the run instead of immediately taking off has been a positive indicator of his development. "That's what you want to do because you can get a lot of big plays in the scramble phase of the game," Clements explained. "Rather than just taking off and running, he's looking and trying to make a play, and that's where good things can happen."
As he enters his second year as the Packers' starting quarterback, Jordan Love remains focused on refining his skills and preparing for the defensive adjustments that are sure to come. With the support of a seasoned coaching staff and a commitment to continual improvement, Love is poised to build on his experiences from last season and lead the Packers to new heights.