The Green Bay Packers will face their first divisional opponent this week in the Minnesota Vikings, and the main storyline is who will be playing quarterback for the Packers. Jordan Love has missed two straight starts after suffering a sprained MCL in the Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but Malik Willis has kept Green Bay on track with two victories.
Love was limited in practice on both Wednesday and Thursday with his knee injury. Don’t expect a final decision on his Week 4 status soon, as Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters on Thursday he will be a game-time decision.
“We’ll give him up to game time,” LaFleur said, per CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones.
It does appear Love is getting close to returning to the field. He was seen warming up at Nissan Stadium prior to the Packers’ Week 3 victory over the Tennessee Titans, but Green Bay granted Willis the opportunity to enact revenge against the team that traded him away just a month ago. He took advantage by scoring a 30-14 victory in his former stadium.
The Packers have been just fine with Willis under center. He leads the NFL in yards per attempt (9.8) and yards per rush (9.5) over the past two weeks, making him just the fourth player over the last half-century to lead the league in both categories over a two-week span. The others are Jalen Hurts, Steve McNair and Randall Cunningham.
There is some strategic value in not declaring Love back just yet, as it forces the Viking to prepare for both quarterbacks. But Love would certainly like to be the one who hands the rival Vikings their first loss of the season.
