Packers HC explains surprising preseason participation plan

Conventional wisdom dictates that the Green Bay Packers would want to protect quarterback Jordan Love through the preseason after Love signed a four-year, $220M deal this summer.

Instead, Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed on Tuesday that Love and "most of the healthy starters on both sides of the ball" will see some action when the Packers open their preseason at the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.

"I think just going through kind of reevaluating the last couple years from when we've had guys not play and last year having them, all the guys play, I thought it was beneficial for us early on, especially Week 1, just to kind of knock some of the rust off," LaFleur explained about his decision, as shared by Rob Demovsky of ESPN.

A 2020 first-round draft pick, Love made just one regular-season start across his first three pro seasons before Green Bay traded future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets in April 2023. Love then appeared in all of the Packers' preseason games last August.

He spent a portion of this summer staging a hold-in as he waited to put pen to paper on a contract extension.

"I think there was a lot of value of going through getting your mind right to get ready to play a football game," LaFleur continued. "Obviously we're going to be smart with those guys. The last thing we want to do is put guys at risk. I mean, there's an inherent risk, right, every time you go out on the field, but we'll be smart with [Love]."

It remains to be seen if Love will take snaps at the Denver Broncos on Aug. 18 or against the Baltimore Ravens on Aug. 24. The Packers begin the regular season with a matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil on Sept. 6.

With Love in the lineup, Green Bay started the 2023 season at 2-5, but then got hot en route to earning a playoff berth with a 9-8 record. The Packers ultimately completed a journey to the divisional round of the postseason where they suffered a 24-21 loss at the San Francisco 49ers.