Packers: What to Watch For in Jordan Love’s Preseason Debut

Mechanics

For most quarterbacks, throwing the football is a full-body process. It begins with their feet, employs the hips and core, radiates up through the chest and shoulders and ultimately ends with the ball being drawn back and thrown forward.

The truly tremendous quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Russell Wilson can make every kind of throw no matter what their feet or shoulders are doing, but that takes years of practice and experience. That’s why it’s important to build up solid base mechanics, so that the quarterback can learn to make other throws off that.

Many young quarterbacks struggle with their footwork, which is where most throws originate. Proper footwork allows the quarterback to move his body in the same direction as the throw, generating the necessary power and accuracy to complete the pass. The main thing I’ll be watching during this game is Jordan Love’s footwork.

The next thing I’ll be watching are his shoulders. Does he consistently square his shoulders to the target before he throws? This is especially important when the pocket breaks down and he’s forced to scramble around and throw off-schedule. Not squaring his shoulders to the target could lead to inaccurately thrown balls.

I’ll also be noting Jordan Love’s arm slot and ball path. His arm slot is self-explanatory, quarterbacks typically want to throw with an over-the-top motion as its harder to bat down, consistently repeatable, and more accurate than dropping down sidearm.

What I mean by ball path is the path the ball takes from when Love decides to throw to when he releases the ball. This is slightly different than arm slot because it incorporates the process of drawing the ball back before pulling it forward.

The best quarterbacks have a short ball path, and can throw the ball in a quick, compact, and powerful motion. Where many quarterbacks get into trouble is the long, looping, baseball-throw-type motion that takes too much time and isn’t as accurate. Some quarterbacks pat the ball too before they throw, which has no point and is simply wasted motion.

Love displayed good mechanics in college at Utah State, but it remains to be seen whether he can consistently replicate those under the bright lights of the NFL and with all the pressure that that entails.