GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Packers and Jordan Love may be close to reaching an agreement on a contract extension, but until that happens, the starting quarterback won’t participate in practices or any games this preseason.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said Monday, shortly before the team’s first practice of training camp, that Love’s representatives informed him Saturday evening of their plans before the deal was finalized.
“We fully understand where this thinking comes from,” Gutekunst said.
Love reported to training camp on time and participated in meetings and other training camp activities other than practice. Previously, Love participated in the entire postseason program and the team’s mandatory training camp in June to meet the requirements for a $500,000 training bonus.
Asked if the deadline could be extended by a few days, Gutekunst said: “Yes, I think so, but again, nobody knows what might happen. We are working very hard to get it done. At the same time, the thing I am sure of is that we want the same thing.”
The Packers have no immediate plans to add another quarterback. Coach Matt LaFleur said second-year pro Sean Clifford will take the first snaps with the starting linebackers, but reps will be split evenly between Clifford and rookie Michael Pratt. LaFleur said former NFL quarterback Sean Mannion, who was hired as an assistant coach this offseason, will help with the throws during practices.
Asked how long they can keep this up without adding a third midfielder, LaFleur said: “That’s a great question. Obviously we hope to get something done here in the next period… sooner rather than later. But that’s something we have to adjust right away.”
LaFleur said he wasn’t immediately concerned about Love and the offense losing the momentum they built last season and into the postseason.
“I know how he prepares, so I don’t worry about that,” LaFleur said.
Without a new deal, Love would have earned just $11 million this season in the final year of a mini-extension he signed last May. That deal added one year, through 2024, to his rookie contract. That was in lieu of the team taking a fifth-year option in that deal. At the time, Green Bay gave Love a signing bonus of $8,788,655. His base salary last season was $1.01 million.
Love is now on the verge of one of the richest contracts in the league and looks likely to join the $50 million-per-year club. The most recent quarterback deal was Trevor Lawrence’s deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars in June. It’s a five-year, $275 million deal that includes $200 million in guarantees. At $55 million per year, Lawrence is tied with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow for the highest average salary in the league.
Love threw for 4,159 yards with 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season. He was one of only four players in 2023 to rank in the top 10 in passing touchdowns (second behind Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott), passing yards (seventh) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (seventh).
He started all 17 games and after a 2–5 start, the Packers finished the season 9–8 to qualify for the playoffs. Love led the team to a wild-card win over the Dallas Cowboys, throwing three touchdown passes and no interceptions before a divisional-round loss to the San Francisco 49ers, which ended with Love’s interception on the final playoff snap.
“Alcohol enthusiast. Twitter ninja. Tv lover. Falls down a lot. Hipster-friendly coffee geek.”