Waiting isn’t sexy. You can’t package it or hype it up. But it might just be the most important commodity in sports…or business. When an NFL team selects a quarterback in the first round of the draft, you can almost hear the fanbase salivating. The question becomes: How good can this guy be right now? Fans—and even some upper management—don’t want to think about realistic timetables. They don’t want to hear about the proper developmental curve.
The hottest name in the NFL right now is Jordan Love. Those who wager on the sport know that his MVP odds have improved significantly over the past couple of weeks. With Green Bay’s recent addition of Micah Parsons on defense, the Packers seem poised to make a Super Bowl run. But none of that would be possible without the leadership and accurate arm of the team’s QB—Love.
Love wasn’t a No. 1 pick. He didn’t even become a regular starter until his third year in the pros. Drafted in 2021 at No. 26 overall out of Utah State, Love sat behind the four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers for years. Not only did he have to wait and watch, it wasn’t always an easy process being in Rodgers’ shadow. Waiting isn’t just boring, it can be tedious. It can test you. But for all his efforts, Love is now an MVP favorite and helming a Super Bowl contender.
Sometimes success does happen quickly, of course. Last year’s rookie sensation Jayden Daniels took his Washington Commanders team to the NFC Championship. He did the unthinkable—he was a star QB right away. But for every player like Daniels, there are others who struggle. Last year’s No. 1 pick, Caleb Williams, for example, did not wow the critics on a 5-12 Chicago Bears team. He’s one of many No. 1 picks who fared poorly at the position early on.
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - NOVEMBER 04: Baker Mayfield #6 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers celebrates after throwing a touchdown pass against the Kansas City Chiefs during the third quarter at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on November 04, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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The top pick in 2018, Baker Mayfield, has famously bounced around between cities, going from Cleveland to Carolina to Los Angeles. Now, he’s found a home in Tampa Bay, where he’s an All-Pro a half-decade after being drafted. Sam Darnold, the No. 3 pick in 2018, has also moved from team to team, bouncing from the Jets to the Panthers to the 49ers. Last year, he became an All-Pro with the Vikings. This year he’s leading the 1-1 Seahawks, after signing a $100 million deal.
Good things take time. As much as young players and their fans may not want to hear it, biding your time can be fruitful. Legacies aren’t built with “likes” and they aren’t solidified in weeks. It takes hard work and honest improvement over months and years. There is no easy way to scale a mountain. Overnight fame is nothing to be prized over long-term success.
In that way, perhaps teams like Carolina or Cleveland—or even many businesses—should study how Green Bay operates.
Love isn’t the Cheese Heads’ first success story. He is one in a long line that goes back to the 1960s and Bart Starr. That mantle was taken up later by Brett Favre in the 1990s, then Rodgers in the 2000s. Each sat behind the starter before they were given the prime responsibility of leading their franchise. And each—Starr, Favre and Rodgers—won Super Bowls at 27 years old. If Love makes it to the Big Game this season, guess how old he’ll be? Yes, 27.
Like those other football teams, perhaps business leaders should also examine Green Bay’s philosophy. How often do promising hires come into the office only to struggle with a workload? Are they given a long enough rope or are they too quickly written off as failures? And who are the people training the trainees? That’s the exact question NFL icon Tom Brady raised last week.
Speaking with Brady, radio personality Colin Cowherd put forth his theory that if a QB hasn’t shown real promise by Thanksgiving of his second season, then he should be considered a bust. Brady, though, took issue with that idea. “There’s a lot of people who don’t know what they’re doing when they’re tasked with coaching a quarterback,” he told Cowherd.
FOXBORO, MA - JANUARY 16: Tom Brady #12 and head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots shake hands at the start of the AFC Divisional Playoff Game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium on January 16, 2016 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
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He’s right. Whenever you enter a professional situation, there isn’t always a clear path forward. You may be stuck behind an all-time great who isn’t going anywhere or you may flounder with the job requirements. But while some young quarterbacks don’t want to take their time behind a great player, there are others like Love who embraced the idea.
“It’s very hard," said Love in 2023 when he took over as the starter. “It’s not easy. Obviously, you want to be the guy—everybody wants to be the guy…But it was the situation I was put in. There was really nothing I could do about it. I say all the time to control what I can control and all I can control…is how I approach every day, how I learn, how I grow, and how I get myself ready when my name is called.”