By any reasonable measure, Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love took a significant step forward in 2025. It was the step he had been asked to make by both those in the Packers sphere as well as nationally, the one he was supposed to make in 2024 before injuries derailed his season.
Love ascended to becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the league this season. The stats and the eye test both make that clear. Yet it seems few people nationally are keen to recognize it.
The latest example is a year-end quarterback rankings column by NFL.com’s Nick Shook, where Love was ranked as the 14th best QB in the league for the 2025 campaign, factoring in the regular season and postseason.
To put it bluntly, that is an absolutely egregious oversight by any statistical measure.
By averaging out Love’s ranking in yards per attempt, big time throws, turnover-worthy plays, average depth of target, adjusted completion rate, pressure to sack rate, NFL passer rating and PFF rushing grade, he would be first in the entire league.
Love ranked in the top nine in every one of those passing categories. No other quarterback ranked in the top fifteen for all of them. He also did this behind what PFF graded as the 22nd best pass blocking unit in the NFL.
The assertion from Shook that Love “never quite found the level of consistency Green Bay needs from its franchise quarterback” is demonstrably false by a wide margin. It is virtually impossible to hold that opinion based on the evidence of the tape and the stats.
Was Love actually the best quarterback in the league, as those stats suggest? No. He did not win the MVP award or receive a single vote. He was third in the betting odds before a concussion late in the year cost him games though.
His resume lacked counting stats, having only thrown 27 touchdowns, mostly due to the Packers being a run funnel in the red zone, with Josh Jacobs their go-to guy near the goal line. If that is part of the reason for Love’s low ranking (which it may not be) it is a lazy one.
Love was also fantastic in Green Bay’s only playoff game, which is allegedly included in these rankings.
Let’s examine some of the quarterbacks placed above Love in the rankings. A reminder: the list is apparently only based on the play of this season, so previous status should not matter.
Matthew Stafford (ranked 1st overall) and Drake Maye (No. 4) would be expected to be ranked higher by default, as they were the MVP one and two. If rushing ability needs to be given more sway, leading to Josh Allen (No. 2) being ranked ahead, that is understandable.
After that, the list ceases to make much sense.
Dak Prescott (No. 3) is a similar prototype of quarterback to Love. He has very strong and well-rounded passing stats but does not provide much value as a runner. He did not finish higher than Love in any of the passing categories listed earlier, yet was placed 11 spots higher in the rankings.
Justin Herbert at No. 5 is very odd. He was fourth in PFF rushing grade and ninth in turnover worthy play rate (tied with Love), but averaged 20th place in all the other key stats. Love’s average ranking in those was sixth.
Herbert seems to be getting a lot of credit for merely existing behind a porous offensive line, which ranked 31st in PFFs pass block grades, but Love was not exactly playing in pristine conditions either and simply outplayed him in every passing category.
Trevor Lawrence at No. 6 is also aggressive and is likely based on both he and the Jaguars improving throughout the season. The only categories he finished above Love in were PFF rushing grade and average depth of target (fifth place compared to seventh).
Sam Darnold (No. 7) probably gets a boost due to his team winning the Super Bowl, which in this exercise he should not, and him playing well in the NFC Championship Game, but the idea that he was better than Love on the balance of the whole season is not backed up by the numbers.
Caleb Williams in eighth place is another head scratcher. He is a better runner than Love and had a marginally better pressure to sack rate, but was a significantly worse passer. He was 39th in the NFL in adjusted completion percentage, 21st in yards per attempt, 18th in turnover worthy play rate and 28th in NFL passer rating.
The highlight throws are some of the best you will see, but down to down he did not come close to Love.
Jared Goff being listed a top 10 quarterback, ranked ninth on the list, is pretty laughable based on his 2025 season. He was 36th in big time throw rate, 38th in average depth of target and 20th in pressure to sack rate and offers zero threat as a runner.
Joe Burrow received a 10th place ranking despite only playing eight games, while Lamar Jackson was at No. 11 despite missing four games and having a disappointing season, ranking 34th in big time throw rate, 25th in adjusted completion percentage and 34th in pressure to sack rate.
Considering the list is supposed to be a summation of just the 2025 season, it seems that was not the case for Burrow and Jackson, who were probably given a bump based on their previous achievements.
Daniel Jones was ranked above Love at No. 12. Daniel Jones. 32nd in big time throw rate and turnover worthy play rate. Daniel Jones.
Mahomes (13) was the final quarterback ranked above Love, despite not finishing within nine spots of him in any category except rushing grade. This is probably another case of prior achievements being factored in.
Outside of just Love’s ranking, having Brock Purdy all the way down at 15 is pretty disrespectful. He was 10th in yards per attempt, third in adjusted completion percentage and first in pressure to sack rate.
Aaron Rodgers being ranked as high as 16th place, ahead of Jalen Hurts, does not make sense looking at the stats or having watched the games. Rodgers was 31st in yards per attempt, 40th in average depth of target, 21st in adjusted completion percentage and 30th in pressure to sack rate.
There are a lot of subjective factors that rightly or wrongly get factored in when talking about quarterbacks, and there is of course an element of “eye of the beholder,” but there has to be a semblance of realism rooted in their actual individual performance.
If you are making a list of the best quarterbacks from last season and list 13 names before you get to Jordan Love, just rip up the list and start over.
