Jordan Love is a very cool QB.
The Packers signal-caller plays the game with such brazen aggression that watching him is the coolest experience in the sport. According to Sumer Sports, he's fourth in the NFL in average target depth of 10.1, and not only is he throwing passes downfield frequently, he's attacking these coverages the right way to confuse QBs.
We've spent much of the season talking about how to beat second-tier defenses, and the answer remains that you can beat defenses downfield. Even with solid protection and a QB as aggressive as Love, you can still attack these defenses. Of all QBs with at least 30 attempts against what Sports Information Solutions calls two-high shells, Love ranks second in the NFL in average pitching depth against these defenses. His belief in his arm, combined with the aggressive nature of his passing offense, allows him to remain explosive against these structures.
Look at what he did against Arizona. He sprinkled in some very high-level pitches that show his belief in his arm. The Packers are running the dagger from a trip formation, which forces the outside receivers to come dig all the time. The Cardinals are down by two points, but Love is going to break this offense down. He takes this ball and waits for it to pass completely through all pitch windows before throwing it. Most QBs would have gone for a checkdown or gone into scramble mode. When he has the ball in his hands, Love is a pocket passer who is going to crush you downfield no matter what.
The next few throws just show the belief Love has in his arm, making these tight window throws that elevate the entire offense behind him. On fourth-and-9, the Packers put their offense on the field. You need to get a first down and they run the over followed by a backside dig. The Cardinals spin into Cover 3, but nothing is open. The middle part of the field is flooded and the outer route to the summit is flooded.
Love lofts the pass with perfect touch and speed, placing it over the linebacker's outstretched arm and into the hands of Christian Watson. I mean, this is an incredible throw, one of the best we've seen from a QB this season when you factor in downs and distance. Look how cool love is in your pocket. He looked to his left, didn't like it, and went back to his right and threw strikes before he could get any pressure. Those tight window throws are what makes him such a fun QB to watch from bottom to top.
This throw could also be in the “best pass of the season” category, showing how talented Love is and how he handles pressure situations. Love rarely scrambles under pressure — according to SIS, he's only scrambled under pressure three times this season — but what he's doing is against blitzes. It's about trusting in your ability to crush teams downfield. His interception numbers this season are high, so sometimes he might get burned for that, but the belief and idea of always being in attack mode is what makes him so cool to watch and what other top QBs are It's something that sets it apart. league. This touchdown to Romeo Dube is just a bad throw with the Cardinals playing him at home. This is a cover 0 blitz. So they're just trying to send in almost everyone and force this throw to be fast or inaccurate. What Love does under pressure is fascinating. He can drift at times, but his arm is so talented that he can place the ball exactly where he needs it. Most signal callers can't even escape this pressure, let alone keep the ball inbounds. Still, Love was just crazy enough to make this throw and was rewarded with a touchdown. What a player, man.
I know people will look at Love's interception numbers and balk at the idea that Love is best suited to attack two high shells. His interceptions have been bad since the beginning of the year, and some of them were just bad luck. But instead of throwing a ton of RPOs and playing it safe, he tries to crush teams downfield with his arm. I think that's the biggest difference between some QBs today and QBs of the past. Yes, the success rate numbers went down, but most QBs at the time took these types of shots against these coverages and continued to be aggressive against them. Love will have a big challenge facing the equally aggressive Houston Texans defense, but it will be interesting to see how he continues to defend his title as Trick Shot King.
