After Last Year’s 2-Minute Failures, Love’s Veteran Focus Rallies Packers

In some 2-minute situations in the past, Jordan Love tried too hard to be the hero. The Green Bay Packers’ 2023 season ended in the playoffs at San Francisco when the quarterback tossed an ill-advised, cross-body throw into the hands of a defender.

But against the Houston Texans on Sunday, the second-year starter played some mind tricks on himself to lead Green Bay on a game-winning drive that secured a 24-22 win to move to 5-2.

Trailing by two and starting with the ball at their 30, Love and the Packers’ offense had 104 seconds to win the game.

It shouldn’t have come down to this for Green Bay, giving up three turnovers that led to 16 points for the Texans. Love had thrown two avoidable interceptions. The only moment that mattered, though, was the one that lied ahead.

Love had to take a breath and dial in. The goal was to move with speed but think with composure.

“My mindset is just make it another drive,” Love said. “There’s a lot of pressure, the game on the line, so I think if you let the moment get to big, you’re not going to be able to go out there and execute the way you want to.”

The emotions of a leader, for better or worse, are contagious. In the same way teammates look up to their leader for how to go about practice and work, they mimic their emotions.

One of Love’s best traits as a leader is his poise. He plays an unpredictable style of football but his emotions are predictable and steady.

Even with the team’s back against the wall.

“Definitely just try to focus on breathing and slowing the heart rate down,” Love said of his mindset entering the final drive. “Just trying to focus on the details of the plays.”

Love hasn’t exactly been steady in game-winning situations. His tendency to look for the home run factored in a few losses last year, including at the Raiders, Broncos and Steelers in the span of a month.

For all the times he’s cost them in those situations, it’s provided him with plenty of learning opportunities.

“We’ve repped these situations a lot more. It always is tough, just how critical every play is in those 2-minute situations,” Love said. “Definitely a lot of stuff we learned from last year.”

He settled for the equivalent of a few base hits against the Texans, chipping away at their defense with completions of 8, 13, 12 and 6. Chinese philosopher Confucius wasn’t talking about football when he wrote, “The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones,” but it certainly applies to the conservative approach to the drive.

Love had been trying to leap the entire mountain before. Even on the first play of the drive against the Texans, he tried to connect with Romeo Doubs for what would’ve been a 20-yard gain, with the pass being tipped by a Texan linebacker before just barely slipping out the hands of safety Eric Murray.

After the scare, Love reeled things in, connecting with tight end Tucker Kraft on a simple 8-yard catch that stopped the clock. Though he rainbowed a pass to wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks after the Packers crossed midfield, he kept the ball out of harm’s way by reading the movement of Murray, throwing it inside.

One 6-yard tough catch by Doubs later and the Packers were in perfect position for McManus, who was signed just five days before, to nail a 45-yard kick as time expired.

“That was huge for him (Love) to take us all the way down the field and get the opportunity to right there to kick a field goal,” LaFleur said.

“He showed us great poise and ability to lead us down in the most critical moment,” LaFleur said. “Two-minute, I don’t want to say it was an issue for us, but we’ve had some bad things happen in some of those situations. For us to come away today with a win, a game-winning drive in a two-minute situation, I think that will give us a lot of confidence moving forward.”