After only one year as a starter, it seems like Jordan Love will already make his debut in the NFL's Top 100 list. The annual show counting down the top players (voted by fellow players) returns next week, but NFL Films on X has given an indication that Love will be there — and with a huge praise from Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Harrison Phillips.
"I don't know if I've seen a player within a season progress that much," Phillips said. "We went to Lambeau earlier in the year, won pretty comfortably. We pressured him quite a bit, we made him struggle a lot. I Always wanted to play Aaron Rodgers the first couple of weeks of the year, because he's not able to see our defense, he's not able to pick up the tells or what our calls are. And I think he put off some of that knowledge into Jordan Love. When we saw him at the end of the year, I just saw him comfortable, he's buying time, he's letting his receivers get open. He's knowing what's the weak part of our defense."
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Love had two clearly different parts of the season. From weeks 1 to 8, he was an up and down quarterback, still trying to get his feet under him. But from week 9 on, he became one of the elite players in the league. And that difference can be exemplified using the Vikings games. In the first one, in week 7, Love went 24/41 for 229 yards, a touchdown and an interception, a 72.1 passer rating. The Vikings won 24-10.
In week 16, Love went 24/33 for 256 yards, three touchdowns and no picks, a 125.3 passer rating and a 33-10 win for the Packers.
"He's got the arm strength, he's got the talent," Harrison Phillips added. "His football IQ is what grew the most for me from playing him first and second."
Point of view
Harrison Phillips' perspective is particularly interesting and relevant because he played for the Buffalo Bills from 2018 to 2021, so he closely saw Josh Allen's development .
Drafted in 2018, Allen struggled through his first two seasons, but showed some signs of progress late in year 2. Then, in 2020, he had his first elite season, establishing himself as a top quarterback.
Love had a different path in the NFL, because his development happened as a backup for three years. Obviously, playing was the final aspect in that process, and when he did, the progress went faster.
This year, the Packers and Vikings will play at Lambeau Field in week 4, which will be Green Bay's first divisional game of the season. Once again, the game in Minnesota will be later in the season, at US Bank Stadium in week 17.
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