They can’t keep getting away with this, That is precisely the sentiment felt right now by fans of the Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears. While it’s still very early in the career of starting quarterback Jordan Love, it appears the Green Bay Packers have a new face of the franchise.
Green Bay already had some of the most incredible fortunes in sports history with having one Hall of Fame player follow in another’s footsteps. Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers each brought home the Lombardi Trophy, multiple NFL MVPs and racked up countless accolades. While there’s no telling what Love’s future holds, we can examine his performance in 2023 to how Rodgers and Favre fared when they first became the starter.
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Let’s dive into the statistical comparison of Jordan Love, Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre in their first seasons as the Packers’ starting quarterback.
Aaron Rodgers vs Jordan Love as first-year Green Bay Packers starting QB
Rodgers is truly the best side-by-side comparison for Love. Like the current Packers’ starting quarterback, Rodgers was a surprise first-round pick by Green Bay who rode the bench for several years learning from one of the best quarterbacks ever.
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The similarities extend beyond that. In 2008, the Packers were the youngest team in the NFL (average age of 25.57 years), featuring a cast of weapons that included 26-year-old running back Ryan Grant, 25-year-old wide receiver Greg Jennings, 23-year-old Jordy Nelson and veteran tight end Donald Lee (28 years old). Let’s compare that to Green Bay’s roster in 2023.
- Green Bay Packers OL Pass-Blocking Efficiency (’08): 85.8 (16th in NFL), 9.1 pressures per game
- Green Bay Packers OL Pass-Blocking Efficiency (’08): 85.7 (9th in NFL), 9.3 pressures per game
Entering November, the average age on the Packers’ roster was 25.7 years old. It is, once again, the youngest roster in the NFL. Love’s top offensive weapons this season are 24-year-old Christian Watson, 23-year-old Jayden Reed, 23-year-old Luke Musgrave, 22-year-old Dontavvion Wicks and 23-year-old Romeo Doubs.
| Pass YPG | YPA | AY/A | Completion % | TD – INT % | Sack Rate | QBR | PFF | ||
| Aaron Rodgers (2008) | 252.4 | 7.53 | 7.49 | 63.62 | 5.2 – 2.4 | 6% | 62.9 | 79.1 | |
| Jordan Love (2023) | 238.8 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 61.3 | 5.4 – 2.5 | 5.6% | 58.3 | 74.1 |
The roster and statistical comparisons are incredible. Based purely on the numbers, Rodgers and Love entered nearly identical situations and have played well. It didn’t help either quarterback that they were surrounded by inexperienced players and a young roster, but they’ve delivered results.
Thanks to Pro Football Focus, we can also track some advanced stats for these two quarterbacks. Circumstances matter and you can see how Rodgers and Love stack up in critical spots by examining a few key situational statistics.
- Aaron Rodgers vs pressure (2008): 42.7% completion rate, 56.8 PFF grade, 4-3 TD-INT, 5.0 yards per attempt, 59.2 QB rating
- Jordan Love vs pressure (2023): 45.8% completion rate, 53.0 PFF grade, 5-4 TD-INT, 6.9 yards per attempt, 69.0 QB rating
- Aaron Rodgers vs blitz (2008): 58.2% completion rate, 80.8 PFF grade, 10-2 TD-INT, 6.4 yards per attempt, 97.6 QB rating
- Jordan Love vs blitz (2023): 59.3% completion rate, 76.9 PFF grade, 5-0 TD-INT, 6.5 yards per attempt, 91.0 QB rating
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Rodgers had the benefit of a full season to improve, whereas we’re cutting off Love’s numbers before his phenomenal performance against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football. One thing we will note, however, is that Rodgers (22-11 TD-INT, 92.1 QB rating) and Love (22-10 TD-INT, 90.2 QB rating) have near-identical stats through their first 13 starts in Green Bay.
Jordan Love vs Brett Favre stat comparison
Obviously, the NFL has changed over the last 30 years. It’s a pass-heavy league with rules created to help make it easier to score and that makes life easier for quarterbacks. However, we can still compare how Love and Favre performed in their first season as the starting quarterback for the Packers.
| Pass YPG | YPA | AY/A | Completion % | TD – INT % | Sack Rate | QB Rating | ||
| Brett Favre (1992) | 215.1 | 6.9 | 6.4 | 62.4 | 3.8 – 2.8 | 6.7 | 85.3 | |
| Jordan Love (2023) | 238.8 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 61.3 | 5.4 – 2.5 | 5.6% | 90.2 |
What’s even more remarkable when comparing the Packers’ quarterbacks are some of the stylistic similarities. Rodgers learned by watching Favre that it’s often better to protect the football than make a throw with a high risk of interception. However, all three signal-callers also have the physical ability to make off-platform throws.
Love’s throws against Kansas City are a perfect example. Throwing off his back foot with pressure in his face on a critical down? Rodgers did that against the Chiefs’ defense. Pinpoint accuracy to place a football just centimeters away from a defender’s hand? Yup, Rodgers too. Of course, throwing off-platform and making dangerous throws that turn into big plays thanks to rare skill was Favre’s specialty, as well.
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A small sample size is a thing and a fair criticism of the reactions to Love’s recent success is that this is that there’s not enough data to make a fair evaluation. However, we can compare this recent three-game run to Favre’s best four-game stretch in 1994.
Best three-game stretches from Jordan Love and Brett Favre in first seasons as starting QB
- Brett Favre stats (Weeks 11-13, 1992): 110.5 QB rating, 5-0 TD-INT, 646 passing yards, 7.69 yards per attempt, 67.9 percent completion rate, 3-0 record
- Jordan Love stats (Weeks 11-13, 2023): 116.9 QB rating, 8-0 TD-INT, 857 passing yards, 7.94 yards per attempt, 68.5 percent completion rate, 3-0 record
The NFL is, of course, a results business and what matters more than the counting stats are wins and losses. Favre’s rookie season ended with a 9-6 record and he made the playoffs for the first time one year later. Rodgers went 6-10 in his first full season as the starter, making the playoffs a year later.
Love already has as many wins as Rodgers did and with winnable games looming against the New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers, he can match Favre’s win total and take Green Bay to the playoffs in his first year as QB1.