The passes arc with a sense of predetermination these days when Jordan Love uncorks another deep ball.
The intended target is certainly going to have a chance to catch the ball, and odds are he has some degree of separation against the doomed coverage. What’s less of a guarantee is whether the pass catcher will perform his duty and complete the grab, but that was not an issue during the Packers’ 45-27 victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday, Nov. 8.
The numbers are cartoonish, as Green Bay put up a season high in points and total yards (478) – the worst rushing team in the NFL entering the week scored three times on the ground and ran for 129 yards with running back Josh Jacobs sidelined for most of the game after suffering a broken finger.
Love finished with 372 yards passing and three scores through the air and added a rushing touchdown to kick off the scoring 101 seconds into the game to create a well-balanced stat sheet. The one-two punch in the wide-receiver room of Christian Watson and Matthew Golden showed out with a combined 17 receptions on 18 targets for 335 yards and two touchdowns.
“It’s bombs away,” NBC’s Jason Garrett said during “Football Night in America.”
Fellow NBC analyst Mike Tomlin said it was time to consider the tandem among the elite duos in the league “at the tip-top of the food chain.”
Mike Vrabel criticizes Christian Gonzalez after Patriots' loss
The performance put Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel in position to criticize one of his best players in cornerback Christian Gonzalez. Signed to a four-year, $135 million extension that made him one of the richest corners in the NFL, Gonzalez was targeted by Love 11 times. He was successful on 10 of those occasions, for 187 yards and a touchdown.
“When your best players don’t play well, it’s hard to win in this league,” Vrabel said.
The 2025 Coach of the Year continued: “We expect a lot more. He expects a lot more. We need more from him and everybody else. It wasn't just him. Again, we got to be able to coach and be prepared, and then we have to execute. Just like it is every single week when we don't win, it's all of us, and it starts with me.”
By the end of the first quarter, Golden had 126 receiving yards. Love completed seven passes that went for 24 yards or more and averaged 12.8 yards per attempt. He was 6-for-8 on deep passes (20+ air yards) for 235 yards and a touchdown, according to Next Gen Stats.
It marked the second time Love completed six deep passes this season (Week 5 against the Chicago Bears was the other) – no other quarterback in the NFL has done it once in 2026. Love said it felt like he was "flowing" while dropping back and throwing.
"It feels like you're in that flow state and just finding ways to get guys the ball ... it's a great feeling, and you just want to keep chasing every play and keep making good plays," Love told reporters. "I think I made some good throws, but I think guys are making pretty good catches as well. We've just got to keep building on that. Christian and 'MG,' I looked at their stat line after the game, it was just crazy. It's crazy to see that, and I think they're balling right now. So we've just got to keep finding ways to get them the rock. "
Golden tagged Gonzalez for seven catches and 105 yards, while Watson handed him 82 yards over three catches, per Next Gen Stats. A single defender surrendering more than 80 yards to a pair of teammates in one game has not happened since at least 2018, also per Next Gen Stats.
LaFleur said any appearance of going after Gonzalez was more related to attacking specific coverages.
“When you got a quarterback playing the way Jordan Love’s playing,” said LaFleur, who appeared eager to widen the margin of victory against Vrabel, his former boss with the Tennessee Titans. “(I’m) just dialing up the plays.
“Just calling it. I can’t say enough about it. Those are low-percentage throws in theory, but he’s making them look high-percentage. I mean, they’re right on the money.”
Love left Gillette Stadium, where Tom Brady called his first Patriots game as a broadcaster, to chants of "MVP!" from visiting and well-traveled Packers fans.
"It's definitely cool," Love said of the recognition, "but just got to keep going and really just block everything else out and keep focusing on what I can do as an individual and to be able to help our team just keep getting better."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jordan Love, Packers offense give Patriots' $135 million cornerback nightmares
