


Aaron Rodgers is passing the torch in Green Bay.
The Jets’ new quarterback had a positive message for the Packers’ Jordan Love ahead of training camp, according the the man replacing Rodgers in Green Bay.
“He said, ‘Just be yourself, have fun, enjoy it.’ It’s obviously my time now, and he said just be yourself, and you know, that’s all you can do,” Love, the third-year pro, said. “That’s kind of been the message from everybody, is be yourself, don’t try to be Aaron.”
Love, 24, who was selected by the Packers in the first round of the 2020 draft out of Utah State, had a long wait before the chance to take the reins in Green Bay came.
“It seemed like three years, it seemed like a while looking back on it,” Love told reporters in May. “The first year was the longest. …Definitely felt like a while.”
The Packers decision to trade up to draft Love was a polarizing one, as the Packers had just made the NFC Championship game and Rodgers said he wasn’t “thrilled” by the team taking his likely successor at the time.

Rodgers put together back-to-back MVP seasons and signed a three-year, $150 million contract extension in 2022, which signaled to Love that he might be in the backseat for a very long time.
“But I’ll admit, I think the hardest time was when he re-signed the contract last year,” Love said. “It was kind of like, ‘OK, well, where do we go from here? What do I do?’ I sat back, thought to myself and came back with the approach like just go ball out.”
The relationship between Rodgers and the Packers soured, however, after a subpar season from both the quarterback and the team in 2022, resulting in the blockbuster trade to the Jets this offseason.

The Packers went 8-9 and missed the playoffs last year for the first time since 2018.
Love has played in just 10 games over his NFL career and started in one, totaling 606 yards on 50-83 passing with three touchdowns and three interceptions.