What Aaron Rodgers can do in an offense is a lot more advanced than many quarterbacks in the league, but even with his departure, the Green Bay Packers playbook will be used to its full capacity. Quarterback Jordan Love is entering his first season as a starter, and the Packers have confidence he can handle whatever they throw at him.
Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich acknowledged that Love is not at the level Rodgers was, but noted that the 24-year-old was able to learn from his predecessor for three years.
"Obviously he doesn't have the playing experience that Aaron had, but from a playbook standpoint, I think pretty much all of it's on the table," Stenavich said (via ESPN). "He's been around for three years and has really attacked it. Even last year, you could see him come into his own, felt a lot more comfortable, so this year he's really hitting it on all cylinders, so I'm really excited to see what he's going to bring."
Given that it is his first year as the starter, there is inherently more preparation involved.
"We're starting on step 1 instead of starting at step 8, where you can start with Aaron Rodgers," Stenavich said. "So, you're going to take a step back and you're just going to keep working ahead. Can't really look at the end result right now. We're just going to look at one day at a time and just go from there, but he's ready, he's excited. I think all the guys, you can feel good vibes, good energy around the locker room, so it's going to be fun."
Rodgers got his start after learning under one of the all-time greats, Brett Farve, and now Love has a chance to repeat history by thriving after years of observing and learning from the sideline.
The offense will undoubtedly look different, with a young offense finding its identity and adding new pieces like rookie wide receivers Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks and Grant DuBose. How quickly Love can adjust from being QB2 to QB1 will be something only seen with time. The change may mean relying more on running backs Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon given the difference in development between Love and Rodgers.
As the offseason activities ramp up, we will get a better look at how the Packers are adjusting to having someone other than No. 12 lead their offense for the first time 2008.
"I think it might [look different]," Stenavich noted. "And it's not just because of not having Aaron Rodgers. It might just be these other pieces that we've added as well. It's OTAs right now, so we're just going to kind of see how it all fits, and once we figure out kind of how we're going to attack defenses, then we'll roll from there. But I think it might [look different]."
Green Bay selected Love with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Since then, he has played in 10 games compared to 15 seasons of Rodgers as the Packers' No. 1 QB. Love has started one career game, a Packers loss, and has 60.2 completion percentage, three touchdowns and three interceptions.
It is anyone's guess how the Packers will fare with all the changes made this offseason, from Love and beyond, but for now the team is just focusing on the positives, and the players are ready for a "fun" season.
