GREEN BAY, Wis. — Jordan Love scrambled left from his own 46-yard line during the end-of-practice two-minute drill on Wednesday. He had plenty of green grass ahead of him to advance at least 10 yards on first-and-10. The drill began on the offense’s 35-yard line with 1:40 remaining and the defense leading, 28-21. Though the offense started with no timeouts, there was enough time left to earn those 10 yards and another first down, spike the ball and be able to reach the end zone in another couple of plays.
Instead of putting his head down and taking off, however, Love kept his head up, bought time and floated a pass down the left sideline to wide receiver Jayden Reed. Reed skied for a 21-yard gain to the opposing 33-yard line while losing his helmet with cornerback Keisean Nixon in coverage. Love rushed to the line and spiked the ball.
“I’m not going to lie, I ran the wrong route on that play,” Reed said. “We were in scramble mode. We talked after it and Jordan said I had space behind and could have kept running. He directed me where to go and he threw it up and I had to make the catch.”
The play served as an example of what veteran quarterback coach Tom Clements pinpointed this offseason as one of Love’s areas of growth last season. Instead of immediately taking off when space allowed after the pocket collapsed, Clements said, Love kept his head up more as the season progressed in search of bigger passing plays downfield during scramble drills.
Jordan Love on the offense: “I think it’s definitely still a work in progress, but compared to last year, there’s a lot less question marks. Guys understand where they need to be a lot better and we have a better feel for the offense. But something we’ve got to keep building on… pic.twitter.com/N1YFOkCNHz
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) July 31, 2024
Why take an easy 10 yards when being more patient amid chaos could get you 20?
“I think that is definitely a goal of mine to keep working scramble drill when I get outside the pocket, just keep trying to find those big plays down the field,” Love said after practice. “I think for everybody, too — the receivers, tight ends — just keep working the scramble drill when it goes off-schedule, finding the space they can work. Especially in practice, I don’t want to just take off and run.”
Two plays after the spike, the offense faced a third-and-10 from the 33. This time, the scramble drill called for Love to take off. He evaded the pressure of defensive end Rashan Gary and scampered up the right sideline for 22 yards. On the next play, Love hit wideout Dontayvion Wicks in the back middle of the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown to bring the offense within one. On the ensuing two-point conversion — it wasn’t a kicking day for Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph, so there was nobody to kick an extra point — Love hit Wicks for the win while backpedaling and with defensive end Lukas Van Ness applying pressure.
“It’s like our two-point staple,” Love said. “I was kind of looking back side, got back to front side and it looked like everybody was gloved. And then I saw Wicks kind of last second. I was about to start scrambling and I just tried to get it out there before the back side was able to get there. Another good route by him. Way to stay open in the back of the end zone and make a play.”
Though it hadn’t been the smoothest start to Love’s camp after he missed the first four practices awaiting a contract extension, the end of practice on Wednesday offered a small sample size for one of the reasons the Packers think Love is their guy. His composure and decision-making under pressure create big plays, as they did on the two scramble drills, and he can create something from very little in critical moments, as he did on the game-winning two-point conversion.
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“I’m definitely getting back in that rhythm,” Love said. “I feel like training camp, the speed is always so much faster. I feel like everybody’s got that energy and they’re flying around, especially at the start. Definitely something I’m just getting back to playing fast and trying to keep myself slowed down in the midst of all it, trying to not get sped up myself with my feet and my reads, which I think is something I’m trying to focus on right now.”
Here are six other things you should know from Wednesday’s eighth practice of training camp.
1. One day after wide receiver Romeo Doubs got the better of cornerback Jaire Alexander in 1-on-1s, earning immense praise from Alexander after practice, Doubs did so again. The third-year receiver left Alexander in his dust with a cut across the middle before catching a pass from backup quarterback Sean Clifford on their first rep against each other. On their second, Doubs broke free toward the left sideline late in his route for another catch on Alexander. Nixon stood out in 1-on-1s on Tuesday in two reps against Reed and one against Wicks, but Reed had three catches against Nixon in three reps on Wednesday, including one before which he burned Nixon deep down the left sideline while Love put a perfect ball on him.
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2. One day after dropping what should’ve been an easy interception in the end zone, safety Xavier McKinney got his revenge on Love during a move-the-ball period on another pass thrown right to him. McKinney appeared to fumble as he got up and the offense recovered, however.
“I didn’t see him,” Love said of McKinney. “We talked a little about it after. I think he said he started backside, kind of dropped middle like a hook player and one of those plays I didn’t see him … I was looking front side and I just totally missed him. I tried to throw it over the middle and right when it came out of my hand is when I saw him, so something I’ll be able to go back and watch on tape, learn from that rep, grow from it, try to recognize what they’re in pre-snap a little bit better. But really good job by him just disguising it, playing off my eyes and making a play on the ball.”
No WR1 at practice, you say?
Here’s Matt LaFleur greeting Jordy Nelson pic.twitter.com/qhAN0IQ2k1
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) July 31, 2024
3. This Packers defense is active around the line of scrimmage, not just between the tackles and not just the starters. Defensive tackle T.J. Slaton has flashed early in camp and blew up a Josh Jacobs outside run on Wednesday. Safety Tyler Coyle did the same on a short pass to the tight end Wilson and cornerback Gemon Green did so on a screen to wideout Julian Hicks. Corey Ballentine perfectly read a swing pass to running back AJ Dillon, who dropped the ball, and linebacker Eric Wilson stuffed a shotgun run to Dillon not long after. Safety Anthony Johnson Jr. blew up a swing pass to Christian Watson for a loss of two yards and defensive tackle Colby Wooden stuffed running back Emanuel Wilson, while linebacker Quay Walker covered ground to limit a Jacobs run near the left sideline and fellow linebacker Isaiah McDuffie stopped a toss to Jacobs on the right side.
“I would say they put us in good situations to just run and hit and I feel like that’s what I do best,” said McDuffie, who also had a pressure against left tackle Rasheed Walker that led to a Nixon pass breakup against receiver Samori Toure. “I get to the ball, I get there violently, so I feel like it’s going to be good. I feel like they’re putting us in those situations to be most successful, so I think it’s going to be fun.”
Walker had another tackle for loss on a swing pass to Jacobs, and on the next play, Bullard blew up another swing pass to Jacobs. In the starters’ two-minute drill, Alexander swiftly met a swing pass to Jacobs on the first play of the drive and McDuffie appeared to stuff Jacobs on a fourth-down dump-off before the chains, but coaches gave the offense a first down. It certainly looks like the aggressive nature of new coordinator Jeff Hafley’s defense that those inside the building have been talking about is showing up on the field.
4. Love’s deep balls haven’t always been pristine and his deep connections with receivers are still a work in progress, as evidenced by a two-play sequence on Wednesday. On the first play, Love didn’t throw the tightest of spirals but put a deep ball right in Watson’s hands for a gain of about 40 yards down the left sideline over Nixon. On the next play, Love threw an inch too far of Wicks, who had the ball deflect off his fingertips before he juggled it and ultimately couldn’t come down with a catch of similar distance.
“I think it all comes down to that chemistry,” Love said. “I have a better feel for where guys are going to be at, where I need to put the ball on some of those deep balls, what the leverage might be of the DB and just playing with confidence and putting it out there for them to go make plays and go catch and understanding the speed of some of our guys out there. I’m just putting it out there as far as I can and letting them go out there and make a play and try not to overthrow them.”
5. A couple under-the-radar guys stood out during practice on Wednesday. Defensive end Kingsley Enagbare had a pass breakup of Love at the line of scrimmage during a get-back-on-track period for the offense and had a pressure on the first play of the backups’ two-minute drill. Clifford, who has been plagued by interceptions this summer, didn’t have any Wednesday and his first two throws of a move-the-ball period were a dime to wide receiver Grant DuBose for a first down up the right sideline past the dive of cornerback Robert Rochell and a 30-yard completion down the right sideline to Toure. Rochell had a fourth-down pass breakup against Malik Heath in a move-the-ball period and a fourth-down tackle short of the sticks against running back MarShawn Lloyd in the backups’ two-minute drill. DuBose’s strong camp continued with the catch of the day, a leaping grab over safeties Evan Williams and Zayne Anderson on a free-play heave from Clifford.
“Last year this time around, I was sidelined still,” the 2023 seventh-rounder DuBose said. “I didn’t come back until the second preseason game. I’ve taken a big leap from last year. I’m feeling a lot stronger. I’m feeling faster, just healthier overall, so I’m in a good spot … free play, we all going to take a shot. Sean Clifford gave me a chance and I just do what I do best. Went up and attacked the ball at the highest point and just tried to make a play for the team.”
6. Lloyd, the third-round rookie, bobbled the handoff from quarterback Jacob Eason on his second snap of 11-on-11 work after missing the first week of camp with a hip injury. Not only that, but running backs coach Ben Sirmans made Lloyd finish his run since the rookie stopped running after preventing the ball from hitting the ground. While Lloyd returned to team drills, cornerback Carrington Valentine missed practice with a hamstring injury and offensive lineman Donovan Jennings is now in his second separate stint of missing time with a knee injury. Head coach Matt LaFleur said before practice that Tucker Kraft is close to returning (torn pectoral suffered this offseason) and that the second-year tight end asks to practice every day.
(Photo: Tork Mason / USA Today)
