The quarterback position is the single most important one on the football field. If you’ve got it, good. If you don’t, you better fix that right away.
For a while, NFC North quarterbacks have been among the better groups in the NFL—mostly thanks to Aaron Rodgers. Now that Rodgers has taken his talents and eclectic personality to East Rutherford, New Jersey, how do the NFC North quarterbacks stack up?
There are a pair of veteran quarterbacks in the division and a pair of third-year signal callers. Let’s look at the two young guns and figure out who will be better in 2023, Justin Fields vs Jordan Love.
Jordan Love
Taking over for Aaron Rodgers is going to be a monumental task. Just as Rodgers had to replace Brett Favre, Love gets to replace his own future Hall of Famer.
To this point, Love has played sparingly. Love has only appeared in 10 games and attempted 83 passes. He has only started once in a loss. Love comes into the 2023 season with a grand total of 606 yards and three touchdowns.
Heading into his year, looking at Love is going to be mostly projection and speculation. He has a good arm and is likely going to be the second-most mobile quarterback in the division.
Love has a solid team around him and has weapons like Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs and Aaron Jones. In order for this team to at least match its 8-9 mark from last year, Love just needs to be average. It doesn’t hurt that the Packers have a third-place schedule that features the NFC South.
Love could finish this season as the worst of the NFC North quarterbacks. To be fair, considering the other three, that’s not saying much.
Justin Fields
Fields is just starting to really look like an NFL quarterback. In college, he was an electric runner who could fit passes into the smallest windows. In the NFL, he’s been asked to be a runner because his weapons and protection have been atrocious. In fact, Fields is training with Michael Vick.
In 27 games in his young career, Fields has thrown for 4,112 yards and 24 touchdowns to 21 interceptions. Last year, he did take a massive step forward as a passer and rusher. He went from 1,870 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions as a rookie to 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. Now, those aren't exactly MVP-level numbers, but look at his rushing numbers. As a rookie, he ran the ball 72 times for 420 yards and a pair of scores. Last year, Fields ran the ball 160 times for 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns.
Fields finished seventh in the NFL in rushing yards (379 yards better than the next quarterback, Lamar Jackson). His 7.1 YPC led the league. He’s already vaulted himself into the conversation as the best rushing quarterback in the league.
In 2023, it looks like Fields and the Bears’ offense will be a little better.
Fields will get to play alongside rookie Roshan Johnson out of Texas. Johnson will be able to take pressure off Fields. They also fortified the offensive line with Darnell Wright (one of the best tackles in the class) and added Tyler Scott at receiver.
Verdict
Love is going to be an interesting case in 2023. He comes in pretty raw and unknown. He could jump into the league and ball out and bring another title back to Titletown (well, maybe not this year).
We know who Fields is. He’s a great runner with an under-utilized arm who has had just about nothing around him.
When it comes to these two third-year quarterbacks, Fields has the edge in 2023. Love could very well overtake Fields in the near future, but as of now, it’s Fields.
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