Packers QB Jordan loves ‘playing his best ball right now’

GREEN BAY – When Packers quarterback Jordan Love missed a turkey leg after last Thanksgiving’s win in Detroit, he and his teammates were determined to make sure Love got his just reward this year.

Mission accomplished, the way Love held his turkey leg aloft as he headed toward the Lambeau Field tunnel after Thursday night’s 30-17 win over Miami looked like a trophy that meant a lot to him.

“It was very delicious,” Love said with a pretty big smile from the podium after the game.

Well, Love’s play of late has also been pretty good, and it’s a big reason why the Packers have put themselves in a decent position at 9-3 heading into December.

Since getting healthy during the bye week, which helped both Love’s knee and groin injuries heal, he has posted passer ratings of 113.0, 107.7 and 129.2 over his last three games. This after just a triple-digit passer rating in his first seven starts of the season.

The high mark was Thursday night’s number, his best this year, and it ended a run of 10 straight quarters now in which Love hasn’t thrown an interception and the Packers’ offense hasn’t turned the ball over.

“I think he’s playing his best ball right now, I really do,” head coach Matt LaFleur said of his quarterback. “I think he’s done a great job of taking what’s there, taking control when they’re there or taking the shots when they’re there.”

LaFleur added that the focus with Love has been to emphasize the sonic foundation and let the rest emerge. It seems to be working, and it’s certainly easier to play fundamentally strong when the legs are healthy, unlike what Love dealt with for most of the first half of the season.

Love’s efficiency breeds the same from the entire offense, and there’s a lot to like about how that unit has been playing lately.

“We’re building a good thing on offense right now,” Love said. “We’re getting into that rhythm, finding that groove, and we just have to keep being consistent.”

It’s not all smooth sailing yet — the offense was flagged for three more penalties Thursday night, two of them false starts in the first half — but it certainly looks like it’s starting to resemble last year’s postseason run.