A week ago, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said the team wants to extend quarterback Jordan Love, who is entering into the final year of his current deal in 2024, prior to the start of training camp in late July.
Love affirmed that negotiations for his long-term extension should increase following the conclusion of the Packers' mandatory minicamp on Thursday. "Yeah I think they should," Love said Tuesday, via ESPN.
When asked if he believes a new deal could get done prior to the start of training camp in late July, Love kept his answer short and sweet. "Yes. That's what I've heard. ... I like being in the mix [knowing how contract negotiations are going]. That's that," Love said smiling.
The Packers have traditionally announced some of their star players' new deals to kick off training camp in years past, and on Tuesday Gutekunest revealed that while the team doesn't have Love's contract signed and sealed, just waiting for training camp to be announced, both Green Bay and Love are motivated to get his extension completed.
"I wish that was the case," Gutekunst said on Cheesehead TV Tuesday when asked if Love's deal is done and the team is just waiting to announce it at the start of training camp. "I would love to have it done a couple weeks ago, that would be great. To have stability at quarterback, particularly with Jordan, would be something that is good for the organization, good for our team. I think I'm optimistic because I think both we want Jordan here, and Jordan wants to be here. There's a desire on both sides to get something done. Would love to have it done before training camp, I think that would be ideal. Whether or not that happens, we'll see how it goes.
Gutenkunst continued: "I think [EVP and director of football operations] Russ [Ball] is doing a great job. His relationship with David Mulugheta and their people is really, really strong. These things take time, and none of them go real fast. I'm not overly concerned, but I think for all parties involved we would love to have it done before training camp. We'll see how that goes. More importantly is the fact that we have an opportunity here to take the quarterback position and make it very stable for us for the forseeable future. That's exciting."
Love began his first season as four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers' successor slowly, but he found his groove during the back half of the 2023 season, throwing 23 touchdowns to only three interceptions in his final nine games, including the playoffs. His 32 passing touchdowns last season were the second most in the NFL, behind only Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott's 36.
He led the seventh-seeded Packers to 48-32 victory over Prescott's second-seeded Cowboys in his postseason debut after throwing for 272 passing yards and three touchdowns while completing 16 of his 21 passes for a 157.2 passer rating, setting a Green Bay single-game postseason record.
Jordan Love 2023 season (including playoffs)
| First Nine Games | Last 10 Games | |
|---|---|---|
W-L | 3-6 | 7-3 |
Comp Pct | 58.7% | 69.8% |
Pass YPG | 223.2 | 261.6 |
TD-INT | 14-10 | 23-3 |
Passer Rating | 80.5 | 112.1 |
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow's five-year, $275 million deal ($55 million average per year) is the top of the market in terms of APY, and NFC North rival Jared Goff, who is four years older than the 25-year-old Love, re-signed with the Lions on a five-year, $212 million extension ($53 million average per year) this offseason, putting him second in the league in average annual contract value. Love will most likely top Goff on the quarterback pay scale in the next five-to-eight weeks.
