Green Bay Packers' Jordan Love 'dinged' after debut

Following the Green Bay Packers first preseason game, Jordan Love needs to get his shoulder checked out.

#Packers QB Jordan Love will get his throwing shoulder checked out today, but the hope is it’s just a strain, source said. Coach Matt LaFleur said last night Love’s preseason debut was cut short after he got “dinged” on a sack.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 15, 2021

Evidently, the Packers are hoping for the best when it comes to Love’s injury. Last night, the former first round pick received the most action he’s seen since he was drafted. He performed well, completing 12 of 17 passes for 122 yards, adding on a touchdown pass as well.

It was an encouraging debut for the future successor to Aaron Rodgers. With the reigning NFL MVP’s future in Green Bay murky, it’s vital that Love is able to get all the playing time in the preseason that he can. If things go according to plan, Rodgers’ back-up will sit the entirety of the regular season, and become the starting quarterback of the Packers the following year.

Famously, Rodgers has been outspoken about Green Bay’s decision to draft Love. While the former Super Bowl MVP doesn’t have a problem with the second-year quarterback personally, the selection ripped open an existing rift between Rodgers and the front office.

Aaron Rodgers on Jordan Love

While Love may be Rodgers’ eventual replacement, the latter has been complementary to his successor throughout training camp. 

“He may not ask a ton of questions, but I know he’s watching,” Rodgers said earlier this summer. “We put on a clip from last year, going through some install that we’re putting in in the next couple of days, and watching him from last year to this year you can just see that he’s been honing the craft and working on his timing, and his tempo, and his drops and his balance.”

While rumors persisted that Rodgers held disdain for Love, he squashed them quickly. He revealed he maintained a good relationship with Love throughout his disagreements with the front office this offseason.

“And then I just reached out; I reached out a number of times [to] check on him [and] see how he’s doing,” Rodgers said, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. “I didn’t hold things from him. I let him know where I was at mentally and what I was thinking about. And hopefully he appreciated that.”

Rodgers seems to be taking the opposite approach from his predecessor. Brett Farve famously protested the idea that it was his job to mentor Rodgers when the Packers drafted the young quarterback out of Cal in 2005.

Jordan Love’s 2021

Love spent the offseason preparing to be the Packers’ starter as Rodgers did not attend OTAs and other offseason programming.

A tumultuous rookie offseason required Love to learn the playbook remotely, and he took zero snaps during the regular season last year. Rodgers’ storied history on the field aside, it makes sense that the Packers would want to keep him around to continue to give Love another season to grow and learn as QB2.

Hopefully Jordan Love’s shoulder is alright, as the young quarterback looks to build on an encouraging debut.

On3’s Ashton Pollard contributed to this article.

Image courtesy of Larry Radloff / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images.