Football is funny. If Jayden Reed catches that deep crosser on the Green Bay Packers’ final drive vs. Chicago or if Christian Watson goes up with two hands at the goal line to catch a magnificent throw from his quarterback, the conversation around Jordan Love, Matt LaFleur and the 2026 Packers is much different.

This wild-card drive had a chance to go down in Packers/NFL lore.

It did not. Chicago hung on. Pressure on all parties involved ratchets up this fall.

It’s looking like Micah Parsons will miss a hearty chunk of this season as he recovers from a torn ACL. Several other starters departed, too. All of which means Love must elevate in Year 4 as this team’s starter. He’s the focus of this Real Football episode with co-host Jim Monos. The former Eagles/Saints/Bills personnel man studied the tape and shares his thoughts.

Then, we zoom out to rank and debate all NFC North quarterbacks.

Who’s No. 1? Monos is a believer in the apple of Ryan Poles’ eyes and I’m sensing a very hungry Lions team in Allen Park.

The pod starts with our thoughts on Brendan Sorsby. There will be no supplemental draft for the QB. The shield’s hypocrisy is hilarious. The pod ends with thoughts on my former Bleacher Report co-worker Matt Miller, who was recently involved in a near-fatal car accident. Our prayers are with you, my friend.

As always, Go Long subscribers can access the full hour of “Real Football.”

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