Jordan Love and Aaron Rodgers are about to head toward the most crucial stretch of their respective seasons. For the Green Bay Packers, their playoff hopes are still intact, resting on the next three games. The Pittsburgh Steelers, on the other hand, are almost about to be done with their postseason dreams unless they can pull off a late-season surge. With consistency being the common denominator here, predecessor Brett Favre shared his thoughts on how likely they are to show up.

“Jordan has shown he can make all the throws, and showed that his teammates love playing with him and for him,” Favre said on Episode 5 of the 4th and Favre podcast. “If you go back two years, they were basically a play away from a shot at the Super Bowl before losing to San Francisco.”

With a 67.7 percent completion rate, 2,560 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and just three interceptions this season, Love has been delivering his best performance since becoming the starter in 2023. His 70.0 QBR ranks 4th in the league currently. Yet, he’s tied 16th for touchdown passes. That’s the contradiction Favre has zeroed in on.

“If your quarterback is not on top of his game, the chances of you winning go down,” the retired player said. “Your quarterback play has got to be consistent and good to give your team a chance to win.”

But all hope is not lost, and Love’s Week 8 performance was evidence enough.

In his best game this season, which was ironically against former mentor Rodgers, Love completed 29-of-37 passes (78.4%) for 360 yards (the second-most of his career) and three touchdowns. He became the first NFL quarterback to complete 20 consecutive passes, throw for at least 350 yards, and three touchdowns with no turnovers or sacks during the 35-25 win.

What’s more, the 27-year-old’s performance also tied with Favre for the team’s single-game record on most consecutive passes. The latter’s record came in the 2007 Thanksgiving showdown against the Detroit Lions, where he threw for 381 yards.

And yet, since the Week 8 contest, Love’s performance has been considerably subdued. Through the last four games (Week 12 included), he’s posted just two touchdowns while taking 7 sacks. On the contrary, Love had 8 touchdowns and just three sacks in the four games before that. The passer rating spectrum is also interesting. Across the first five games of the season, Love had a 110.22 average passer rating, which went down to 96.42 across the next five clashes.

That said, the Packers’ recent game against the Minnesota Vikings still showcased dominance: A 23-6 win where the running game carried the load with Emanuel Wilson rushing for 107 yards and two scores. Love, who was playing through a shoulder injury, had a limited workload. The team reportedly had a sideline conversation to let their defense keep balling out. The offense took a backseat, deciding to protect the ball instead.

But, while Jordan Love fine-tunes his game, Aaron Rodgers is fighting against time and his own body in Pittsburgh. Brett Favre has seen similar flashes in Rodgers, but Love seems to be playing on a higher level now.

Aaron Rodgers battling adversity

The 41-year-old quarterback’s performance has been a mixed bag. His mentee, Jordan Love, has clearly been playing better.

“Aaron has played considerably better this year than he has the last couple of years,” Favre noted. “I’ve seen flashes of what we’ve come to know with Aaron.

“Jordan has played a little more consistently than Rodgers. He can play better at times. I like Jordan’s play, his demeanor, and his approach. He’s not flashy, but again, he can make all the throws.”

The Packers now sit at 7-3-1 after Sunday’s win, with Love averaging 232.7 yards per game. Overall, his completion percentage has jumped to 67.7 percent so far this season compared to 63.1 percent last season. 

As for Rodgers, he has thrown for 1,969 yards and scored 19 touchdowns (ranked 5th in the league). But he’s also thrown seven picks, four more than the Packers quarterback. His completion percentage draws a parallel with Love as well. A-Rod has a 66.4 percent completion rate this season compared to 63.0 percent in 2024 with the New York Jets.

But as Brett Favre noted, “I’m not ruling either one of those out for a playoff run.”