Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers clinched a playoff spot this past Sunday with a hard-fought 17-9 win against the division rival Chicago Bears. Love’s leadership of the team throughout the season has garnered widespread praise: from fans, his teammates, his coach and others in the league. Although some may find it premature or simply “living in the moment”, I actually believe there is a plausible case to make that Jordan Love, in his first year as starter, could very well be the 2023 MVP of the NFL.
Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers: Highs and lows of the 2023 season
Let’s recap the 2023 season for the Green Bay Packers. After a high flying win against the Bears in their first game, the Packers proceeded to struggle and wound up with a 3-6 record. Then, they were able to turn it around and win 6 of their last 8 games to finish 9-8 and the #7 seed in the NFC. Love particularly played excellent down the stretch, especially in key wins against Minnesota and Detroit.
Despite the inconsistent year for the team as a whole, Love put up stellar numbers. He threw for over 4,000 years and 32 touchdowns with only 11 interceptions. Most importantly, he was able to guide his team to the playoffs in his first full year as the starting quarterback of the franchise; something Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre were both unable to accomplish. What made the achievement even sweeter was that Green Bay was able to clinch that playoff birth against their longtime rival Chicago Bears at Lambeau field.
Most valuable player: Jordan Love and…who else?
It would be foolish to believe that Jordan Love is the only player who is worthy of MVP consideration. Most believe that Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is the clear favorite to win his second MVP trophy. The Ravens finished with a league best 13-4 record, and Jackson played fantastic football during the entire the year. But, his 24 passing touchdowns may be considered on the “low end” for MVP-winning quarterbacks. Nevertheless, Jackson’s outstanding performance against San Francisco and Miami down the stretch undoubtedly puts him at the forefront of the race.
Also, the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott is a clear contender as he leads the league in passing touchdowns with 36. Others who will likely be considered are two of the San Francisco 49ers’ best players: running back Christian McCaffrey and quarterback Brock Purdy. Many considered Purdy the favorite to win MVP until his 4-interception night against the Baltimore Ravens on Christmas.
Jordan Love: What else does he have to do?
It would be a fallacy to think that simply getting Green Bay back into the playoffs will be enough to catapult Jordan Love into the MVP conversation. In order for him to be seriously considered for the trophy, the Green Bay Packers would have to probably pull off at least one upset in the postseason. And that opportunity is coming up against a tough Dallas team that has been dominant at home.
Knocking off teams like Dallas and San Francisco, who have MVP contestants of their own, won’t be easy. That is particularly true in light of the news of Jaire Alexander’s freak injury at practice, which could possibly impact how Green Bay performs on defense. But, if they are able to make a deep playoff run, it would be hard to not entertain the notion of Jordan Love being a dark horse candidate in terms of being named the most valuable player in the NFL for 2023.
