The Green Bay Packers and Aaron Rodgers have officially put any issues behind them and will be continuing their relationship for the foreseeable future. It was announced that the Packers made Rodgers the highest-paid player in NFL history. That has left the door open for speculation as to what could happen with Jordan Love.
The two sides agreed to a four-year, $200 million deal, which includes a gargantuan $153 million guaranteed. This will also lower his cap number for the 2022 season, giving Green Bay the cap space they needed to fill out the roster.
This is huge news for the Packers, who should be considered contenders for years to come as long as Rodgers is under centers. For teams around the league that were hoping to become contenders themselves by acquiring Rodgers, they will have to look elsewhere.
But, that doesn’t mean the Packers won’t be trading a quarterback this offseason. They used a first-round pick on Jordan Love in the 2020 NFL Draft and with Rodgers committing long-term, he is no longer needed.
Which teams could look to snag the Utah State product? Here are three teams who should trade for Love following the Rodgers news.
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are one of the teams who could be looking to use their first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft on a quarterback. They still have Matt Ryan locked in as the starter, but if an offer is presented to them in the coming weeks to trade him, they may have to seriously consider it.
Bringing Love in would give them a young quarterback that they can develop and see what they have while continuing to upgrade the rest of the roster. Using a first-round pick on a quarterback and throwing him behind a shaky offensive line with an offense bereft of weapons is a recipe for disaster.
Using that first-round pick to fill another hole and acquiring Jordan Love for picks later in the draft could be an avenue the team goes down. If he sits one more season behind Ryan, they will have the fourth season of his rookie deal and fifth-year option to decide if he is their quarterback of the future.
2. Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are in the early stages of their rebuild and are starting to put the foundation in place. Jared Goff likely isn’t their long-term answer at the position, so they could be in the running to acquire Love.
Given his first-round pedigree, Jordan Love would be a solid pick-up for a Lions team that doesn’t have a long-term option currently on the roster. They are fine with Goff as a placeholder as they continue upgrading the roster around the quarterback position.
Given how many needs the Lions have, landing Love for some late-round picks would be a worthwhile investment. That would enable them to use early picks to fill major holes and turn things over to him down the road with a more complete roster to work with.
1. Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are one team that could take on Jordan Love and make him the starter right away. It would be a risk, but seeing how things turned out with Sam Darnold in 2021, they are likely willing to see what someone else can bring to the team.
The Panthers used a lot of draft capital to land Darnold and C.J. Henderson last year, but they have pieces in place that Love could succeed right away. When healthy, Christian McCaffrey is among the best running backs in the NFL. D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson and Terrace Marshall Jr. make up a nice wide receiver trio.
If Carolina can plug some holes on the offensive line, the offense will be in business. If the Panthers feel Jordan Love is a better prospect than anyone in this year’s draft class, it makes sense pulling the trigger on a deal and seeing what he has got.
