Love misses Packers training, but still not ruled out for match against Colts

GREEN BAY, Wisconsin – Two days after Matt LaFleur said he wouldn't rule out Jordan Love starting Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, the Green Bay Packers coach now had the opportunity to finally confirm that possibility.

He didn't.

“I would say it's pretty open,” LaFleur said Wednesday.

Love did not practice, however, so the question remains whether LaFleur simply wanted to keep the Colts guessing. Love also did not hold his usual Wednesday session with reporters after practice in the locker room. It was unclear whether he will answer questions this week.

Love has not answered any questions since he suffered a sprained medial ligament in his left knee during the third-to-last game of Week 1 in Brazil against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Malik Willis was the starting quarterback for most of Wednesday's games, although LaFleur said practice squad quarterback Sean Clifford also played some snaps on the No. 1 offense.

If Willis starts in place of Love on Sunday, the newly acquired backup quarterback believes he will be better than he was in his three starts as a rookie in Tennessee two years ago, even though he has been in Green Bay for less than three weeks. Willis, who was acquired in a trade with the Titans for a seventh-round pick on Aug. 26, has not started since a three-game appearance during his 2022 rookie season. The Titans went 1-2 in those games, but Willis did not reach the 100-yard passing mark in any of them.

“I mean, you only get better with reps, and reps in a live game would definitely feel different,” said Willis, who took the final two snaps against the Eagles. “At that point, I had only played three games and I was a freshman. Call it what you want, 'I wasn't ready,' but I had to come in and I'm a different player than I was then. But control what you can control. It's not about what you know, it's about what you can prove on the field. You know what I mean?”