Jordan Love takes over the heavy legacy of Aaron Rodgers as quarterback of the Green Bay Packers. How is the 24-year-old doing in his first few months as the Cheeseheads starter?

These words have a lot to say – and they have not only caused a stir among fans of the Green Bay Packers.

Speaking to “Spectrum News 1”, Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs made a comparison between new playmaker Jordan Love and his predecessor, four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. The result: quite surprising.

“I think Jordan can get it done. I think Jordan is a really good quarterback. If you go from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan, Aaron was a really great quarterback, but I think Jordan can do the exact same thing. So I don’t really see where the difference is,” the 24-year-old revealed.

Packers players praise Jordan Love

With Rodgers’ departure for New York, a new era has begun in Green Bay. After 15 years of A-Rod, there will be a new starting quarterback in Love next season. But what is the situation surrounding the former first-round pick? How is Love doing with the Cheeseheads?

That he has no shortage of support from his teammates is evident in nearly every interview surrounding the franchise’s Organized Team Activities. Rookies and veterans – all have nothing but words of praise for the new starter.

David Bakhtiari, fan favourite and long-time friend of Rodgers, is delighted with his new signal caller. “It’s nice to see him be himself now. Not that he wasn’t before, but the backup role is different,” the five-time All-Pro said, “My biggest advice to him is be yourself. You don’t have to be different than you were, you don’t have to be Aaron. Whatever is comfortable for you, let’s do that. “

LaFleur doesn’t want a fourth quarterback

That Love is nowhere near his predecessor, Doubs’ opinion or not, was made clear a few days ago by an announcement from head coach Matt LaFleur.

With Love, Danny Etling and the newly drafted Sean Clifford, the Packers have only three quarterbacks on the roster. Accordingly, the franchise’s failure to sign a fourth, experienced veteran has a very simple reason: Love needs “a ton of reps” in practice. A fourth playmaker simply wouldn’t give the 24-year-old enough time on the practice field to make significant progress in the offseason.

For three years, Love sat on the bench behind Rodgers and was able to learn from one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history. Just as Rodgers once did behind Brett Favre.

Therefore, the new starter hardly has any experience to his name. In three years, he completed 50 of 83 passes for 606 yards and three touchdowns in the regular season, but also had three interceptions. But that doesn’t scare the officials by any means.

Responsibles try to minimise the pressure

In LaFleur’s eyes, Love still needs a ton of practice, but benefits from already being the No. 1 quarterback in OTAs the past few years. Aaron Rodgers famously didn’t show his face on the practice field at that time.

Quarterback coach Tom Clements is also impressed with his protégé. Love has made “great progress”, is “athletic”, “intelligent” and “generally makes good decisions”.

Team President Mark Murphy also had positive things to say. “I’ve been very impressed with the way Jordan has handled himself over the past three years. He has never complained and has continued to work hard to improve his game. Lately, I have seen Jordan step up as a leader. He is ready to play,” he expressed on the team’s website.

But despite all the support – Murphy, LaFleur and co. are doing everything they can to lower expectations and minimise the pressure. “In terms of Jordan, I would advise our fans to remember that this is his first year as a regular and there will be a learning curve. There will be ups and downs but it will be exciting and we have confidence in Jordan,” the president made clear.

Love can turn to Rodgers

By the way, Love himself remains remarkably calm despite the pressure. Speaking to US journalists, he praised predecessor Rodgers, talked about his relationship with the Super Bowl winner and made it clear how excited he is to finally be able to hit the ground running three years after being drafted.

“It’s exciting. There’s a lot of energy around me and I can contribute more because I know I’m the starter now and not the backup. My main focus is to take the squad with me, give every player confidence, show them that I believe in them and trust them,” he indicated.

And if Love does get stuck, there is always one option open to him: Aaron Rodgers. He assures: “If I need help, I can always turn to him. “