Packers 2020 Draft: Jordan Love a gamble, but upside is huge
It’s the draft pick that will define Brian Gutekunst’s tenure as general manager of the Green Bay Packers.
A huge gamble. Gutekunst passed up the opportunity to add a difference-maker for the 2020 season. A top wide receiver like Tee Higgins or Denzel Mims. Or a Day 1 starter at inside linebacker like Patrick Queen.
The Packers instead took a long-term approach. Not only did they select Utah State quarterback Jordan Love with their first-round pick, but they traded up four positions to make it happen.
The risk? The Packers miss the opportunity to draft a player who can offer immediate help in the pursuit of a championship, while Love never becomes the player they hoped. The upside? Love becomes the successor to Aaron Rodgers, helping the Packers maintain their status as one of the best teams in the NFC.
That’s the roll of the dice Gutekunst has taken. He’s banking on Love being able to follow in the footsteps of the Packers’ two-time MVP, who sat behind Brett Favre for three years after being drafted 24th overall in 2005.
Like back then, this pick will draw plenty of criticism from Packers fans. But also like then, it could work.
Love is nowhere near ready to start the NFL. So in many ways, Green Bay was the perfect landing spot. He’s under no pressure to win the starting job or lead this team to victories immediately. Patience will be the key, and he’ll be able to learn from one of the best to ever throw a football.
Jordan Reid of The Draft Network believes that in time, Love can develop into a very good starter:
"“If shown the right amounts of patience also while nurturing him along the way, a team could turn him into a high-end starting QB that turns into a face of the franchise type of player.”"
In Green Bay, Love will be given all the time in the world. The same way Rodgers was. The Packers are championship contenders with No. 12 under center, but the hope is that during these next few seasons, Love will be able to develop while ironing out the concerns to his game.
Turning the ball over is one of those issues. But few quarterbacks in the history of the game have protected the football as well as Rodgers, who he’ll get to watch every day up close.
Gutekunst has seen the value of bringing in a young quarterback before you need one. And it’s an approach that not only worked with Rodgers but also Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes, too, was viewed as a high-risk pick by the Kansas City Chiefs. But with time to sit behind Alex Smith, he’s developed into an MVP.
There’s no guarantee the same will happen here with Love. Far from it. Gutekunst is rolling the dice. But if it pays off, the Packers’ future will be set well beyond Rodgers’ championship window.