Are the Packers themselves happy with Jordan Love as QB?

Aaron Rodgers is out and Jordan Love is in. That's just the way the cookie crumbles, folks. But the question that remains is simple enough: Are the team and the powers that be happy with that decision?

It's hard to imagine a future for Green Bay without Aaron Rodgers. Despite all the controversies, all the zany moments in the media, Green Bay just doesn’t seem like Green Bay without the QB that helped the team secure the big one in 2011 and really was a tour de force for the team.

Eighteen seasons is a long time and perhaps that's why so many Packers fans feel this way. But there is a contingent that feels otherwise, essentially bidding the longtime QB good riddance and good luck in New York, looking to the horizon with hope.

But is it hopeful? Many are indeed wondering the fate of the team overall and perhaps particularly the heralded and coveted QB position.

The team itself seems to be a tad shaken and unsure about what's to come despite months of speculation, officially trading the superstar to the Jets just recently.

The Packers seem intent on Jordan Love as a starter in that coveted QB position, but comments made by Brian Gutekunst, the team's general manager, have thrown a wee bit O' shade onto the decision to start Love come the season.

"It's a lot of money for a guy who hasn't played, but at the same time we're moving forward with him," said Gutekunst.

Yikes! Looks like somebody missed the meeting. I'm picturing Gutekunst walking into the boardroom, cup of coffee in hand, and being told a decision was made.

Of course, that's probably not at all what happened in the slightest, but it's quite obvious something isn't all that it seems to be as far as Rodgers' replacement is concerned. It's blatant: There is worry there.

But what of Jordan Love?

He played his college ball back at Utah State. He was drafted to the NFL back in 2020 and has been with the Packers since. But if we look at the GM's very own comments, his experience on the field is pretty low indeed.

The question remains: Is he ready to fill Aaron Rodgers' shoes?

The president and CEO of the Packers, Mark Murphy, had this to say about the whole deal as it stands:

"Yeah, we have a lot of confidence in him. We drafted him and developed him. A lot of credit goes to our coaches, and to Jordan. But we do think he's ready," Murphy said in March.

But wasn't there someone else out there they could have acquired? Perhaps all of these questions come a tad too late, especially since news dropped that he was given an extension on his contract which pretty much seems to cement the decision, at least to those of us watching closely…

The Packers could've picked up Love's fifth-year option this week. Instead of following through with that though, the Packers gave him a one-year extension, essentially guaranteeing him $13.5 million for 2024 and much more if incentives are hit.

But as unorthodox as the move seems, apparently it is a positive direction for both sides…in which Love makes more dough and the team spends less.

But why spend less? The fact that they didn't trade for some other hot QB eligible for the draft—maybe even a stud from the CFL, which there are indeed many—they decided to stay in-house. And even with what they're paying Love, the salary pales in comparison to what Rodgers was being paid for his efforts.

But financial peril is something that the team is in fact dealing with. Dairyland Express described it as a "deep salary cap hole." They need to rid themselves of what's owed—a reported $16 million—and they need to do so this year.

So in the end, their recent decisions regarding Love are all starting to make some sense. Despite the loads of money GM Gutekunst seems worried about paying, it is still a lot less money than they'd have to pay for either some other stud in the league or anyone else for that matter. So maybe he didn't miss the big meeting after all, eh dear readers?

In the end though, yeah they'll be saving a sack or two of dough, but what of the season? Can we have even a shred of hope of the team doing well, or at least better than last season? Fingers crossed, and we hope Love can shock one and all. A few dropped jaws would be nice.