Green Bay Packers create new precedent with Jordan Love’s rookie contract

Jordan Love is cashing in on his rookie contract, unlike any other No. 26 pick.

The Green Bay Packers are busy locking in their rookie draft class, signing six of their nine draft picks, including first round pick Jordan Love who signed on Wednesday.

Love was the No. 26 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft out of Utah State. The Packers were believed to be looking at a wide receiver at the bottom of the first round but shocked many by trading up four spots to take the talented quarterback.

With Aaron Rodgers still on the team and under contract for several more years, Love will likely sit on the bench and develop for a couple of seasons. But he’ll be cashing in even if he’s not starting for a little while.

According to Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network, Love will receive a fully guaranteed deal, which is the first time for a No. 26 pick. Garafolo reports Love will receive a four-year deal worth $12,383,470 and a signing bonus of $6,566,160.

Not a bad way to break into the NFL, right?

Love was a polarizing prospect leading up to the draft. Some evaluators compared Love to Patrick Mahomes. It’s not a bad thing when you’re compared to the youngest Super Bowl MVP in the league’s history. However, not everyone shared that same belief, and it’s why he slid to the No. 26 pick and why he was the fourth signal-caller taken, behind Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert who went No. 1, No. 5 and No. 6, respectively.

The Packers are banking on Love being more like Mahomes and hope he can be the future of the Packers once Aaron Rodgers moves on in free agency or retires. He’s being paid as a potential franchise quarterback, but it may be a few more seasons before he proves it or not. And by then, he may be close to needing a new contract, which would be much more expensive than his rookie deal, and certainly may not be 100 percent guaranteed.