Matt LaFleur: Jordan Love was good despite interceptions

Jordan Love had a rough performance in the Packer’s preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers. The former first-round pick out of Utah State was 13/24 but threw just 176 yards and three interceptions. Even though the stats didn’t look great, Matt LaFleur actually spoke highly of Love’s work.

LaFleur broke down Love’s game in a press conference. He says the interceptions really weren’t on him and both he and the offense just need to clean up a few things.

“I thought there was a lot of good out there. I thought all three interceptions were pretty unfortunate…It is what it is. Certainly I know he’s gonna want a couple of those throws back and certainly some of the reads but it’s never perfect for a quarterback,” said LaFleur. “I think two of those you could totally take off…We just got to clean up everything around him a lot of times. We say all the time about quarterbacks that they’re gonna get too much credit when we do well and they’re gonna get a lot of the blame when we don’t. That’s just the reality of playing that position in this league but I was pleased with Jordan’s performance.”

Love hasn’t had much opportunity during his two NFL seasons. He didn’t appear in the 2020 season and played in just six games with only one start in 2021. That’s the life of a backup quarterback who’s behind a player like Aaron Rodgers. His production in those games weren’t great either with two touchdowns and three interceptions with a 31.2 QBR.

It was the things Love did outside the box score that impressed LaFleur, though. Even though his numbers weren’t efficient, LaFleur said his process in the huddle and at the line were especially so.

“I thought by and large just watching the things like how the operation was smooth, he got us in and out of the huddle extremely crisp and with urgency. I thought he made some off-schedule plays. He showed some nice athleticism in a couple of those runs as well,” LaFleur said. “There was a lot of good things out there from Jordan. Just the poise that he showed in the pocket. That’s something that we’re looking at and, overall, I thought just the process of everything I thought was a pretty good first step for him.”

Beyond an unexpected absence from their back to back MVP, the Packers won’t anticipate seeing Love much this season besides closing games. However, he still has a lot to prove in showing he’s the eventual heir to Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. Chances, even in preseason, are invaluable for a player like Love. While he may not have been phenomenal on the field, he did enough to catch his head coach’s eye.