Jordan Love shines with career-best performance despite Packers tough loss

While "moral victories" might not always be crowd pleasers, the Green Bay Packers should still be thrilled with the performance Jordan Love turned in during a 23-19 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Paying a visit to a vocal Acrisure Stadium crowd, the young quarterback allowed his team to remain competitive down to the final whistle by remaining composed and showcasing his skillset.

Love finished the contest with 289 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions while completing 21 of his 40 throws—hardly an earth-shattering stat line.

However, numbers don't do his performance justice. Love proved a difference maker across all four quarters.

Jordan Love maximizes his skillset

Green Bay's first drive of the game was a measured one.

Love commanded a 70-yard march down the field that culminated with an impressive toe-tap touchdown by Romeo Doubs. After a season filled with slow offensive starts, this quick strike provided a needed breath of fresh air.

Despite this strong opening, things weren't so seamless the rest of the way. Nonetheless, Love continued to find ways to produce.

The Steelers' impressive front seven brought plenty of pressure Green Bay's way, which could've spelled trouble. Instead, Love utilized his legs by finding ways to roam outside of the pocket and create time for himself. With the help of his offensive line, he kept drives alive and was sacked just once.

Though Love's mobility helped him stay out of trouble, it was his immense arm talent that cemented this outing as his best to date.

Love connected with several targets for big plays, and his chemistry with Jayden Reed was especially encouraging. His touchdown toss to the rookie on third-and-16, as well as a late-game long ball that gave the team one last chance to score, stood out as two of Love's best throws to date.

Jordan Love's big day wasn't enough

Overall, things clicked for Love during most of the game. He seemed more in sync with his weapons compared to prior weeks and also earned increased trust from the coaching staff. The fourth-and-6 conversion sequence early in the third quarter was a strong example of Matt LaFleur showing confidence in his quarterback.

Unfortunately, things unraveled late in the game. First, the Packers turned the ball over in the red zone when Love's toss to Christian Watson was tipped by Patrick Peterson into Keanu Neal's hands.

That play seemed to have sealed things, but the Packers managed to get the ball back and make their way down the field thanks to the aforementioned Reed reception.

Yet, with only three seconds remaining, Love threw his second interception to officially end the game. In both cases, these interceptions hardly stemmed from poor decisions. However, Love's lack of chemistry with Watson, who was targeted on both pick plays, is becoming increasingly apparent.

Neither throw was Love's best, but Watson also did very little work to outmuscle defenders on these scoring attempts. The disconnect between this duo is something Green Bay must address down the stretch.

While these turnovers were disappointing, they shouldn't take away from Green Bay's overall performance. The offense looked rejuvenated, and Love looked as confident as ever.

Had tough breaks, like a blocked extra point and the controversial ruling on a Kenny Pickett lateral, broke Green Bay's way, Love would've been placed in the perfect position to win the game.

So, while the Packers weren't the victors in Pittsburgh, they did lay the groundwork for what a successful Jordan Love offense can look like. All that's missing now is more winning results.

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