Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love has come out with his plan of attack to get a thumb procedure done. He felt the injury on the last play he played in Saturday’s preseason opener against the New York Jets. Love was forced to leave the game on his final play when Jets DT Jay Tufele sacked him, injuring Love. With each passing week, the doubts about his preparedness for this upcoming NFL season have grown.
A similar freak injury to start last season, as Love sprained his left MCL in the regular-season opener and missed two games. The Packers’ leadership is still upbeat about his recovery timetable. So far, General Manager Brian Gutekunst has suggested that Love’s recovery from a sprained right thumb will be a speedy one.
“Well only if it limits you in your ability to go out there and perform the task at hand — no pun intended there,” said Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, reflecting on the severity of the injury and its implications for Love’s performance.
In a twist of circumstances, Love had participated in a joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts before the game against the Jets. He was scheduled to join the team virtually on Wednesday. This joint meeting in Indianapolis just happened to be timed right before their first preseason matchup with the Colts. The expectation was for Love and the other starters to go through practice but not participate in that highly anticipated matchup.
On the field during Monday’s practice, Love didn’t seem limited by the injury, even with his left thumb wrapped. He flashed that resilience in his ability to use his right hand to throw off defenders on his handoffs. To do this simple task would normally take his left hand. Gutekunst noted, “Obviously, you guys saw him out there, he certainly was able to function.”
Love had planned to try to play through the injury to his right thumb, but made the decision that surgery would be required. He is, however, still expected to be available for the preseason finale against the Seattle Seahawks on August 23.
Green Bay GM Brian Gutekunst reiterated his faith in Love’s return. He said, “We’ll have him back fine in time… I don’t see this being a long-term thing for him at all …To his credit, he understood the fine line between providing players with beneficial experience and protecting player health. It’s important to walk this line artfully.” It’s a tough balance, but at the same time the goals we’re trying to accomplish require work and you’ve got to play,” Gutekunst added.
Looking ahead, Love is anticipated to be fully prepared for Week 1 of the NFL season against the Detroit Lions on September 7. That would be consistent with his history. He has been a starter for many of those years and played in nearly all of those preseason contests over the past three seasons.
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