Next Gen Stats, which uses data gathered from on-field player-tracking information, does a great job of telling the story of the Green Bay Packers’ passing offense so far in 2025. At the moment, Packers quarterback Jordan Love has the second-highest “deep %” in the league, behind only Lamar Jackson. “Deep %” is defined by Next Gen Stats as throws where the ball travels at least 20 yards through the air downfield.
In air yards per attempt, Love, by far, leads the league with a 12.5 average, meaning
that’s how deep passes generally travel through two weeks of action.
For perspective, four qualifying quarterbacks have less than half of Love’s air yards per attempt going into Week 3: Bo Nix (5.5), Jalen Hurts (5.6), Aaron Rodgers (5.7) and Joe Flacco (5.9). The Packers will play all of these quarterbacks in 2025, or at least should if they’re healthy, starting with Flacco on Sunday.
So far this year, only one running back has recorded more carries against stacked boxes (eight or more defenders in the box) than Green Bay’s Josh Jacobs: Philadelphia’s Saquon Barkley. Opposing defenses are clearly focused on stopping the Packers’ run game, which presents opportunities through the air. In response, Green Bay has tried to really punish defenses for not having enough deep zone defenders to stop their passing game.
It hasn’t helped that the Packers have faced two blitz-heavy defenses to start the year, which has stalled out their run game. Eventually, though, Love is going to put up enough success through the air that defenses will have to start loosening up their box again, allowing for Jacobs to have easier paths to production. Until then, it’s big play hunting time.
Below are Love’s passing charts from Week 1 and Week 2, if you want a feel for how the spray charts look:
Eventually, the pendulum will swing, and opposing defenses will stop allowing the Packers to take so many deep shots against them. I’m having fun watching Love make these teams pay for their aggression, though. So far in 2025, Love is the second-most blitzed quarterback in the NFL behind Indianapolis’ Daniel Jones. On those 25 passes against the blitz, Love has gone 15 of 25 for 297 yards (11.9 yards per attempt), three touchdowns and no interceptions — good for a 141.2 passer rating.
