Nevada Raiders Josh McDaniels has been an NFL coach for a long time, which has allowed him to watch many of his players develop. One in particular was Jordan Love who played for the New England Patriots when Josh was their offensive coordinator.
In his more than 20 years as an NFL coach, McDaniel has also had the opportunity to watch other young players around the league develop into the athletes they are now.
That includes Jordan Love, the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, against whom McDaniels is preparing his defense on Monday night.
Aaron Rodgers injury gave Love a new “Start” to life
Love is the starter in Green Bay now that veteran Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is playing for the New York Jets, a chance that was long delayed while Rodgers was donning the green and gold.
Love visited the former Patriots offensive coordinator back when he was getting ready for the 2020 NFL Draft, so McDaniels was aware of his potential before he became the Packers’ starting quarterback.
“I actually went out there and visited him and worked him out,”
“He was obviously very successful in college [at Utah State]. Had a really good career and put up a lot of numbers.
“He’s a very smart guy, mobile, big arm, can access all areas of the field in that regard and does. The ball definitely travels down the field with this offense and this coordinator and Matt [LaFleur] do a good job of that.
“He can make plays with his legs, extend them. I’ve watched every snap that he’s played, and it hasn’t been that many before this year, but now he’s starting to gain experience and understand situations, and he’s just a dangerous guy. He has a lot of skill players who are explosive around him.
“So, he’s a big challenge because there are a lot of things that he can do that hurt you. We’re going to have to obviously contain him and try to keep him from making big plays. I had a lot of respect for him coming out and you can see that he’s made progress. He’s more comfortable in the pocket and just developing into a good player.”
With the 26th overall choice in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Packers selected Love.
The Green Bay Packers visit Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas the following week, where the Silver and Black will play.