Jordan Love said he’s ‘hopeful’ to play Sunday vs. Titans; here’s what must happen for him to take the field for Packers

Portrait of Ryan Wood Ryan Wood
Green Bay Press-Gazette

GREEN BAY – All Jordan Love knew was his left knee hurt.

Worst pain he’s ever felt on a football field in his life. Bad enough that even after writhing on the ground in Brazil, after taking a few moments for the Green Bay Packers medical staff to check on their franchise quarterback, after finally getting back up on his feet, Love needed help walking off to the sideline.

The worst fears consumed his thoughts, but nobody around Love wanted to confirm anything before the Packers plane left São Paulo, Brazil, following their Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. There were scans to do. More tests waiting back home in Green Bay. So Love sat on a plane for more than 10 hours, trying not to indulge those worst fears, the idea his 2024 season might already be over.

Injured Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love is shown during the first quarter of their game against the Indianapolis Colts.

“When it happened,” Love said, “it was one of those things that was very scary. Definitely, I was not knowing what happened. I tore a meniscus in college, but I’ve never had an ACL or anything like that. I didn’t know what that felt like, didn’t know what that might be. So a lot of thoughts went through my head.”

Love still doesn’t know what a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his knee feels like. He avoided the worst-case scenario, only a sprained medial collateral ligament. The timetable for his recovery was at least eight months quicker than had Love torn his ACL. It’s possible he might blow away even the initial best-case scenario.

The Packers quarterback practiced Wednesday for the first time since injuring his knee in Brazil, returning to the field just 12 days after his knee buckled under Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter’s weight. Coach Matt LaFleur would only say Love was “limited” in practice, providing no details for what drills his quarterback did and did not participate. Love also wasn’t providing any further information.

LaFleur said Monday his quarterback would need to practice this week before playing Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. So even being limited Wednesday opens the possibility for Love to potentially miss only one game with his knee injury.

“I’m going to take the week,” Love said, “and just take it day by day and see how it feels. I’m not going to make any decisions right now. I’m hopeful that I can get to that point where I can get in there, but we’re just going to take it day by day and see.”

Love said his knee feels “a lot better” than immediately after his injury. He’s still receiving constant treatment. On the field, Love is trying to learn how to play with a bulky knee brace fastened underneath a protective sleeve.

Naturally, Love is no fan of the knee brace. He wore a knee brace in college when he tore the meniscus in his right knee. He wore it last week when he was rehabbing his knee on the sideline. Otherwise, Love said, it feels unfamiliar, and the bulky brace has an impact on his game.

“You’re not as fast, no,” Love said. “I would say that. You’re definitely, it’s just different than not having anything, I would say. It’s a piece of metal on your knee. So it’s definitely not as fast, but it’s one of those things that you just have to adjust. It’s going to help protect me and keep me stable in everything I do. It might change my game a little bit, but at the end of the day I’m not a receiver who has to run all these crazy routes downfield, things like that. I can just stand in the pocket, but it definitely affects my mobility a little bit.”

Love said mobility will be an important for him whenever he returns, knowing “it’s not realistic” to simply stay in the pocket on every drop back. But the quarterback has “a lot of boxes” to check before being cleared to play in a game. The deciding factor will be whether Love can move well enough to protect himself. The Packers training and medical staffs will have a significant say in the decision, along with Love.

More:Here is what Matt LaFleur said Wednesday about Packers quarterback Jordan Love’s status

The Packers are using this week in practice to determine whether Love can protect himself against a live pass rush. If he clears that test, Love could return Sunday against the Titans. But the Packers aren’t going to rush back their quarterback before he’s ready, not with this much season ahead. The idea of injuries being “day to day” might be an overused cliché in an NFL locker room, but this week Love’s situation will receive constant monitoring before Sunday.

“You’ve just got to be able to protect yourself,” Love said. “You don’t have to be able to do all those things. You just have to be able to protect yourself, and it’s going to be different.

“But that’s a huge part of my game. It’s one of those things that’s kind of just in the back of your head. You kind of just react when you’re back there, too. There’s not a lot of thought that when I get back on the field I’ll be thinking of protecting myself. I’ll just be reacting and playing it out.”