Jordan Love has emerged as an offensive juggernaut for the Green Bay Packers this season. He’s proven to be highly effective when presented with man coverage. As a result, he is now leading the NFL with the highest Total Quarterback Rating (QBR) in this category. This accomplishment gleams even more brightly due to the amazing range he had to reach so profoundly. He is currently tied for second in the NFL with 18 touchdown passes vs man coverage.
Even before he got injured, through the first half of the season, Love’s performance had been trending in a positive direction. His YPA against man coverage is an eye popping 8.0, illustrating his elusiveness to make defenders miss in the passing game. He has connected on four deep throws for touchdowns. This play highlights his talent for taking the top off of a defense and keeping them on their toes.
One of those impressive touchdowns was scored by rising star Christian Watson. Both Bo Melton and Dontayvion Wicks made themselves felt with one touchdown reception each. This colorful collection of targets highlights Love’s capacity to spread the football efficiently to all his weapons.
All hasn’t been perfect when it comes to Love’s deep passing. Since Week 8, he has been intercepted twice on deep tries. This would be a significant jump, too, as he threw zero INTs on those types of passes in the first seven weeks of the season. His off-target percentage on throws of 20 or more yards has increased a bit, now at 19%. Even with these challenges, Love is still doing quite well! Going back to Week 8, he’s fourth in the NFL in off-target percentage on deep throws.
Since Week 8, Love has thrown 13 passes of at least 20 yards in the air, leading the league. For one, the increase in deep completions has driven up his yards per attempt. This stat has gone from 3.7 to 4.4 as the season has gone along. Love is close to his best completion percentage on throws of 20-plus air yards this year. Right now, he’s making us look like fools with that 43.4%.
Head Coach Matt LaFleur acknowledged Love’s growth, stating, “Not all of them are going to be perfect, there were a couple that were left short, but he made a couple of really nice throws.” His acknowledgment of Love’s potential is a hint of how much faith the coaching staff has in their new young but veteran-feeling quarterback.
Leave a Reply