Cory’s Corner: Jordan Love Has Daniel Jones To Thank

I blame the New York Giants and Daniel Jones. 

The reason why the Packers are in this precarious position right now with Jordan Love is because the Giants beat the franchise tag buzzer in March 2023 with a whopping four-year, $160 million deal. His cap hit for 2024 is $47.8 million and his cap hit for 2026 is scheduled to be $58.6 million.

That deal was terrible for the Giants. And it’s also why the Giants will be seeking a quarterback in the draft next spring. He has started five seasons and has thrown 62 touchdowns and 40 picks. That doesn’t scream franchise quarterback to me. 

Which leads me to Love. You cannot get upset at Love for his “hold in” as it were. He is not practicing until a deal is in place, but at least he is present for practice. He is at least showing up for his teammates. My uncle used to say, “Two-thirds of life is just showing up.” He may not be throwing tight spirals on the first day of camp, but he is showing to his teammates that he is willing to at least be there — contract stuff aside. 

I get it if the Packers have some nervousness about what’s about to happen. Love only started one season. And he really turned it on in the final eight regular season games with 18 touchdowns and only one interception. But where Love is going to make his money is going to Dallas and blowing the doors off the Cowboys in the playoffs. 

Then he went to San Francisco and actually had a lead entering the fourth quarter. The Packers had a realistic shot at the Super Bowl and that’s why the Packers will be giving Love over $50 million a year. 

To be fair, if I was starting a team right now, aside from Patrick Mahomes, I’d pick Love to be my quarterback. And the reason is simple: he’s only 25 years old. He proved so much last year and he still has plenty of games yet to play. Love has the cornucopia of arm angles, he has the deep ball, he has back shoulder throw and he has the legs to keep defenses honest. 

So if you still doubt that Love is the guy, you can do that. But remember that quarterback is the most important position in all of sports. To already have that much poise in the pocket is something that is rarely seen and it is something that is very costly. 

The Packers are taking a risk by giving Love the GDP of Eagle River, but it’s a bigger risk to not have a true franchise quarterback under center. Once you find him, you better lock him up. 

Love is about to get paid and no matter how much longer Jones plays in New York, it all began when Jones was overpaid for being average.