GREEN BAY, Wis. — Jordan Love may not win the MVP award, but the fact that he’s rightfully in the mix for it should put to rest any questions about his standing in the NFL’s quarterback hierarchy.

Love is elite, probably closer to top-five conversations than top-10 ones. He doesn’t have the career achievements of a Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen, but Love’s talent alone — those team and individual accolades may come, too — has vaulted him into the upper echelon.

The eye test backs it up. The statistics back it up. The odds back it up. There’s no debate worth having anymore about whether Love is the guy, whether the Packers made the right decision in making him their $220 million man, whether he can be the one to help one of sport’s most iconic organizations return the Lombardi Trophy home.

At BetMGM, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is the MVP favorite at -175, followed by New England Patriots QB Drake Maye (2/1) and Love (10/1). Green Bay’s 27-year-old signal caller can make any throw from any platform, and it’s that quality that allows the Packers to win because of him and not simply with him.

Love’s head coach and offensive play caller’s own eye test backs up what those odds indicate.

“He’s playing really good football right now,” Matt LaFleur said bluntly on Monday. “That’s obviously important and it’s going to be important moving forward because we’ve got a hell of a test against this defense. They’re for real, one of the top defenses in the league.”

LaFleur was referring to the Denver Broncos defense since the Packers visit the Mile High City on Sunday. If Love thrives against that unit, one of the NFL’s best under defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, he’ll close the gap between himself and Stafford and Maye while potentially thrusting himself into the thick of the MVP race instead of being a long shot.

It’ll be yet another chance for Love to make a statement in a season littered with ones he’s already made. He began the year completing 35-of-52 passes for 480 yards and four touchdowns in emphatic wins over the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders as he resembled an early MVP candidate. Then came a dud against the Cleveland Browns and their relentless pressure, but Love responded by completing 31-of-43 passes for 337 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-40 “Sunday Night Football” tie against the Dallas Cowboys.

And just like Love responded to the catastrophe in Cleveland with fireworks at Dallas, he did the same following a rocky two-game stretch that included losses to the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles. Over the four games since, all Packers wins as they’ve ascended to first place in the NFC North, Love ranks first in the NFL in expected points added per dropback and first in passer rating, according to TruMedia.

In Sunday’s 28-21 win over the Chicago Bears alone, Love responded to a mind-numbing interception on the opening drive with another handful of moments showcasing why he’s one of the league’s best at the position to help the Packers snatch first place from their rival. And that came 10 days after flexing on the Lions at Ford Field to help the Packers sweep the two-time reigning division champions for the first time since Love’s rookie year.

“I think that we see his resiliency all the time,” wide receiver Christian Watson said. “We know what he’s capable of doing. He puts us in a great position a lot of times, so we’re never going to hold anything against him.”

Love’s proficiency during Toyotathon has evolved from a bit to a marketing campaign between the car company and the Packers QB, but at the heart of the fun is the reality that Love delivers when games matter most late in the year.

Love hasn’t just been cooking during Toyota’s end-of-year sales event this season. Over the entire first 14 weeks, he ranks fourth in passer rating, second in EPA/dropback, fourth in on-target percentage and third in touchdown-to-interception ratio. Was Love too turnover-prone during the beginnings of each of his first two seasons as the full-time starter? Yes. But the argument that he’s reckless is no longer valid. Love has taken care of the ball exceptionally this year while maintaining the aggressiveness he’s come to be known for. According to Next Gen Stats, Love is still tied for sixth in the NFL among quarterbacks with at least 200 pass attempts in average intended air yards (8.7) despite being tied with Stafford for the fewest interceptions (four) among quarterbacks in the top 10 of touchdown passes (Love is tied for fifth with 22).

And remember Love’s first career start? When Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo put Love under siege while Aaron Rodgers had COVID-19 and the second-year quarterback crumbled? Now, Love is arguably the NFL’s best quarterback against the blitz. He ranks fourth in passer rating, first in EPA/dropback and first in on-target percentage when opposing defenses rush five or more this season.

Love’s cool, calm and collected demeanor on the field, even under the highest of pressure, mirrors how he is off it. It makes him a worthy leader and face of the franchise for a Super Bowl contender for more than just his exploits in between the white lines, but it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s playing like one of the league’s best quarterbacks this season.

“I definitely think he deserves a lot more credit and I’m just happy I’m able to be a part of this journey with him,” defensive end Micah Parsons said.

As LaFleur mentioned, the vaunted Broncos defense awaits. This might be Love’s toughest test yet, and perhaps the chance to make his most emphatic statement of the season. Denver ranks first in sack percentage, second in explosive pass defense and fourth in scoring defense.

If Love aces this test, hoisting the MVP trophy may not be a long shot after all.

“We’ve still got a couple weeks left here, but it’s all about finishing,” Love said. “We’re here. We’ve been here before, but we’ve got to finish it.”