Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love was forced to leave the Packers’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday with six seconds left in the fourth quarter after suffering an apparent lower leg injury.
Love’s lower leg was rolled up by an Eagles defender and he lay on the field for a few minutes before leaving the field with a noticeable limp. Here is a video of the play:
Jordan Love
Concerns about a left medial collateral ligament sprain and/or a sprained upper ankle.
He’s limping on the sidelines, but no coaches have worked with him on the bench. pic.twitter.com/MZ8EdPKhD3— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) 7 September 2024
Packers backup quarterback Malik Willis replaced him for the final two plays of the game, which the Eagles eventually won 34-29. He threw an incomplete pass and was sacked, officially ending the game.
Wagner Meier/Getty Images
Love has established himself as one of the NFL’s best young quarterbacks. After his breakout 2023 season in which he threw for 4,159 yards with 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, he received a massive four-year, $220 million contract extension this offseason. His Wild Card performance against the Dallas Cowboys, in which he completed 16 of 21 passes for 272 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions, definitely showed the Packers everything they needed to see.
Love was in good form again on Friday night in Brazil. He did everything he could in the Packers’ narrow loss, throwing for 260 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. On the play that got him injured, he was trying to keep the Packers alive, as a sack would have ended the game. Love somehow managed to avoid the sack and find running back Josh Jacobs with a lateral pass. Unfortunately, Love was in a bad spot and came up short.
The Eagles ultimately won 34-29, but the Green Bay Packers’ attention immediately turned to their franchise quarterback.
The Packers originally selected Love 26th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. The pick drew heavy criticism because Aaron Rodgers was Green Bay’s quarterback at the time and the team could have used the pick to aid another playoff push.
Instead, the Packers opted for Love, who showed signs of being a franchise quarterback just last year. However, he learned behind Rodgers for a few seasons and officially emerged in 2023, when he led the Packers to a surprise postseason berth and an upset win over the Cowboys.
The Packers hope the injury didn’t look quite as bad as it did on the field. Their next game is Sunday, September 15, in Green Bay against the Indianapolis Colts.
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