New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers has given praise to his former backup in Green Bay before, as the veteran gave more props to current Packers quarterback Jordan Love.
“I always felt like it was a part of the job to help those young guys out, and get them ready to play,” Rodgers said Thursday during the Hall of Fame in an interview with NBC Sports announcers Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth. “There was a great one behind me in Green Bay.”
With training camp beginning a few weeks ago, teammate and Packers starting Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones gave praise to Love in an interview earlier this week, stating he is “a true leader” and doesn’t see “too many differences” between him and Rodgers, his former quarterback and saw both on the field or in practice the last two years.
“The development to see [Love] grow in the three years that he’s had sitting behind [Rodgers] has been huge,” Jones told NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
The 2020 former first-round pick from Utah State will be the new starting quarterback for Green Bay after 15 years with Rodgers, a quarterback with a Super Bowl win/MVP and four NFL MVPs under his belt as a ten-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro.
Earlier this offseason, Love, now the incumbent Packers signal caller, was contacted by the current Jets quarterback after news broke that he was traded.
“He wished me the best and said he’d always be there for me if I need anything or have any questions,” Love said. “I will always be grateful to be around him, and the time I had with him where I was able to learn and be behind him. I’m very grateful for it.”
With one start to his name entering his third year in the NFL, he was behind Rodgers when the veteran won two MVPs in the last three seasons before the Packers traded the future hall-of-fame quarterback to New York this offseason as a part of Gang Green.
The 24-year-old will get his first Week One start with the team, as he was contacted by his mentor when training camp began last Tuesday wishing him all the best. He will also debut in the first preseason game as the starter, just like Rodgers back in 2008.
“Aaron reached out to me last night and that’s exactly what he said. … He said ‘Just be yourself, have fun, enjoy it, that it’s obviously my time now and to enjoy it.'”
Back in May after Rodgers was traded, Love said a few words about his predecessor.
“I learned a lot and I was just able to watch a great quarterback: how he works every day, how he handles business in the locker room, interacts with teammates, and how he attacks every day. To be able to sit back as a quarterback and observe him, his footwork, how the ball comes out of his hands, how he practices every day and takes it into the game, is very valuable stuff that I was able to pick his brain on and watch him work. … Watching him, watching the confidence that he has, how he operates every day, how quickly he makes calls and is able to process information, and how well he knows the system. All those little things, to get to see it from a guy who’s been doing it a long time elevates your game by building all that into [my game].”
This is the total opposite of how Rodger’s predecessor as a Packer, legend Hall of Famer Brett Favre, took his mentorship role once it seemed that Favre was on his way out of Green Bay.
“I don’t know that the present starter [myself in that case] is paid to be a mentor, so to speak, or if that’s part of the job, so to speak,” Favre said in an interview with Graham Bensinger in 2017.
“I don’t owe him anything in my opinion except that of being a nice guy. I don’t give him any insights into what I do or don’t do. I think as a starter my job is hard enough to win ball games and be a leader. You’re not a babysitter, by no means am I talking about Aaron. He’s the starter now. … Nowhere does it say you have to take that guy under your wing and teach him the ropes. You don’t have to do anything. What keeps you around is winning ball games for whoever you’re playing for. Whether or not you take a guy under your wing, that means nothing. If there’s a belief out there that I didn’t help Aaron Rodgers or other players, that’s wrong. To what extent did I help them and how does that compare to other guys around the league, I don’t know.”
Love hopes to be the third consecutive quarterback to make his mark for Green Bay, with high expectations to come close to historic icons for the Packers franchise in Favre and Rodgers that came before him.
