GREEN BAY — Jordan Love may be the guy who runs the Green Bay Packers’ offense, but the Packers quarterback is definitely not in charge of the Lambeau Field pregame introductions.
So while Love certainly enjoys being the last man out of the tunnel when public-address announcer Bill Jartz bellows the names of the offensive starters, Love believes it’s a no-brainer that the team introduces the defense before Sunday’s regular-season opener against the rival Detroit Lions.
The idea being to whip the Lambeau faithful into a tizzy before introducing newly-acquired pass rusher Micah Parsons.
“They’ve got to do defense. [With] Micah last, you know what I mean?” Love said after practice Wednesday. “[The] crowd’s going to go crazy. I already see it. I already see it.”
And he sees more than just the intros.
“Defense goes out there first. Gets a three-and-out. Micah gets a sack on third down,” Love predicted. “I already see it. I already see it.”
It’s nice to see that Love isn’t holding any grudges for being kept in the dark when it came to the Packers’ blockbuster acquisition of their new star defensive end. But perhaps that’s just because he’s in such a good mood about how well his thumb injury is healing after surgery.
Despite being pals with Parsons and sharing an agent (David Mulugheta), Love said he had zero insider information before last Thursday’s trade was made, with the Packers getting the 26-year-old, three-time All-Pro Parsons in exchange for 2026 and 2027 first-round draft picks and three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kenny Clark.
Instead, Love learned of the trade from Packers public-relations staffer Tom Fanning in a text message after the news broke.
“It’s amazing. I had no idea,” Love said. “They did a great job of keeping it secret. I saw a lot of the rumors and things that were floating around out there. [But] David didn’t even tell me. Micah didn’t tell me. Nobody kept me in the loop. I was left out of that one.
“[But] I’m excited. It’s amazing, obviously. The flip side of that is it’s really tough losing a player like Kenny Clark [with] everything he’s done for the organization and the player he was, the person he was in this building. It’s tough. But I’m excited to have Micah.”
Parsons, who was listed as a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice, is expected to play against the Lions, although head coach Matt LaFleur wasn’t tipping his hand on how he might be utilized.
“I would say this: Every week in this league, you game plan certain things,” LaFleur said. “And you have game plan specific concepts, if you will, that are going to be just an addition to your normal defense.”
While that sounds like Parsons’ role will initially be limited — especially with another game four days later with a “Thursday Night Football” matchup with the Washington Commanders coming on the heels on Sunday’s opener — Love said he has no restrictions.
Although he is still wearing a brace wrapped in tape on his left thumb after undergoing Aug. 12 surgery to repair a torn UCL ligament in his non-throwing hand, Love was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice and said afterward that the thumb won’t keep him from doing anything — including handing off with his left hand on runs to the right, something he was not doing in practice last week.
“It’s never been much of an issue having it wrapped up,” said Love, who’d been handing off only with his right hand — a potential recipe for a fumbled handoff on a run to the right. “For me, it’s just getting the strength back and things like that in my thumb. The brace and the tape, nothing has been limiting.”
Love originally suffered the injury while absorbing a sack on his 12th and final snap in the Aug. 9 preseason opener against the New York Jets. When it was pointed out that he’ll have to protect his thumb when being tackled and hitting the ground — something he hasn’t had to worry about since the injury — Love acknowledged he hadn’t given that reality much thought.
“That’s a good question. I haven’t hit the ground at all yet, so I think that’s one of those things that you’ve just got to figure out on game time,” Love confessed. “Obviously, [I will] try and stay up as much as possible to try to keep myself protected. But we know it’s football. There are going to be instances when I get tackled or go to the ground, things like that.
“I don’t know. We’ll see how it is. The brace does a good job of just protecting my thumb, but I haven’t been hit yet. Sunday will be my first opportunity to see what it feels like.”
More importantly, it’ll be his first opportunity for game action since last year’s season-ending NFC playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Jan. 12, and his first chance to play with Parsons, not against him.
“I’m doing good, feeling good. I think we’re all ready and excited to get the season kicked off. We’re excited about it and ready,” Love said.
“[Getting Parsons] gives us a big jolt. I think everybody was excited, just because we know what type of player he is. We played against him a couple years ago in the playoffs, so we know exactly who he is and what he’s capable of. So I’m excited to see [the defense].
“I don’t want to speak too soon, but I’m really excited to see him out there wearing the green and gold.”
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