Another year, another Lions L on Thanksgiving Day. And yet, something felt bigger about the Green Bay Packers' 31-24 thriller win over their division rivals in Detroit than normal. Maybe it was the fact that the Lions are likely on their way to stringing their first three-peat of years over .500 since Barry Sanders was in pads. Maybe it was because Green Bay felt the pressure of keeping up with a top four scoring offense in the league. Maybe it was because the pre- and early-season hype they flashed had diminished into a three-way dogfight for the top of the NFC North (surprisingly, prior to Week 13, the Chicago Bears still reign atop the division, albeit narrowly).
But the stakes on Thanksgiving went beyond the right to eat an on-field turkey dinner for the Packers — they extended all the way to legitimate postseason positioning.
Let's be clear: Since becoming the Packers' full-time quarterback in 2023, Love has statistically been one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL. And while most of his counting stats are right on the level of that of his past two seasons, Love has made marked improvements in two areas: completion percentage (67%) and passer rating (104.3). And while the 2025 QB headlines belong either to Drake Maye, Daniel Jones, and the Big Three of Mahomes, Jackson, and Allen, Love has quietly taken his seat at the table of upper echelon signal callers in the league.
Jordan Love's performance against the Lions proves he's a superstar
Love saved what might be his signature performance for his best stage yet. Against one of the scarier defenses in the league, Love played like his entire career was on the line, totaling 234 passing yards and a season-high four TDs to go with his third-highest passer rating of the season so far (124.2). Next Gen Stats' Twitter dove deeper into Love's performance, and it only made his day even crazier.
Jordan Love totaled 234 passing yards and 4 touchdowns against the Lions despite targeting open receivers on a career-low 20.0% of his attempts.
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 27, 2025
Love completed a season-high 4 passes over 20 air yards, with a defender within three yards on three of them.#GBvsDET | #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/w00QFnI6VH
But the crux of Love's day was proving on the biggest stage that Green Bay's offense is explosive enough to take them deep into the postseason. Green Bay, by all major measurements, is a middle-of-the-road offense, and as Mark Oldacres of Packers Wire pointed out prior to the game, Detroit's defensive composition would prove to be a brilliant litmus test for Love and his receivers' ability to open up the offense. Love passed with flying colors — and not just to Dontayvion Wicks either, despite what later highlight reels might tell you.