Packers Beats Bengals By 36-19 In Preseason Opener

LaFleur predicts that Jordan Love of the Packers will play more throughout the preseason.

The majority of what Jordan Love did in his preseason debut as the Green Bay Packers’ new starting quarterback on Friday night was well received, but there were a few things he just couldn’t quite execute, so they’re likely to use him at least once more before the regular season.

Love completed 7 of 10 throws for 46 yards and a score in his two series during the Packers’ 36-19 victory over the Bengals in the exhibition game’s first game.

He sent the ball to five receivers, including two passes to Romeo Doubs, who could replace Julio Jones as the No. 1 receiver, on contested fades of nine and twelve yards for touchdowns, respectively.

Even though All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari was sitting out the game, Love wasn’t under any pressure. And four out of his five play-action throws were successful.

Love’s only deep pass was a go route to speedster Christian Watson down the right sideline on the first drive. Watson caught the pass in stride, but Bengals cornerback Dax Hill had time to cover the gap as the ball soared through the air and break it up. The following play, Love simply overthrew rookie tight end Luke Musgrave who was in a perfect position to gain a first down, which resulted in a punt.

That throw over the middle to Luke was the one Love wished she could take back. Man, I sure did miss him. That’s a simple, everyday toss. Simply couldn’t think of it. But aside from that, I believed we played well. I believed that every pass was made in stride. Of course, the safety made a great play on the one that was thrown to Christian down the sideline.

LaFleur asserted that Love didn’t over-air the deep pass to Watson. On long balls, he specifically advised his quarterback to do that. Although Aaron Rodgers, his predecessor, had perfected the art of holding Hill in the centre of the field for an extra second with his eyes.

What can he do to possibly hold that safety back just another step so he can’t make a play on the ball? It did appear to be an accurate ball. LaFleur declared.

Because developing that level of finesse will take time, LaFleur might want to play Love at least once more during the preseason.

LaFleur predicted that he would play more in the future. “We’ll kind of see how the week goes, see how practises are going, whether that’s against Seattle [in the preseason finale] or whether that’s next week. We’re simply going to play it by ear because we have two crucial practises coming up against New England that will be incredibly important for him.

While Love was the night’s main emphasis, rookie Emanuel Wilson emerged as its heartwarming tale.

Wilson, an undrafted free agent running back from Fort Valley State who started training camp as the Packers’ No. 6 running back, rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns on just six carries, including an 80-yard score. And he did it 14 years after his father’s passing.

I was always thinking, “Dang, I’m really playing on the day my dad died,” Wilson said. “Going outside and taking care of what needs to be done is also a blessing.”

Even Aaron Jones, the starting running back for the Packers, was affected by Wilson’s emotional night.

Jones, whose father passed away in 2021, stated, “I know what he’s been through. “Since he and I had previously spoken about it, I knew that tonight was special for him. After his first touchdown, I simply told him, “Hey, that was for your pops. There he is. He is observing. The greatest seat in the house is his.

“And I told him, ‘Go do it again,’ but he kept having nights,” I said. I just think that was incredibly wonderful and I can connect because you can’t help but think that his dad was out there on the pitch with him.