What we still need to know about the Packers heading into Week 1

Even with training camp and the preseason in the rearview mirror, the Packers still have some questions to answer as Week 1 approaches.

The Green Bay Packers have trimmed their 90-man roster to 53 players, assembled their practice squad, and fully leaned into preparations for Week 1's showdown with the Detroit Lions. On to the regular season, right?

Well, even with training camp and the preseason now in the rearview mirror, the Packers have not answered every relevant question about the team. Before the games start to count, The Leap dives into several of these and attempts to divine answers where possible.

How much will Jordan Love's surgically repaired thumb affect the Packers' under-center usage?

The Packers can thank their chosen deity that the thumb ligament Jordan Love tore came on his non-throwing hand. While he has repeatedly said that the injury won't prevent him from playing in the season opener, that claim only holds water because he isn't a southpaw.

Of course, the injury could still matter even if it doesn't prevent Love from suiting up on Sept. 7. As of this writing, Love still has a protective wrap over his left hand, the same kind he wore last week when he took snaps from a stool and only took part in seven-on-seven periods. Green Bay's medical staff has a well-earned reputation as conservative, but that doesn't mean Love's left thumb has healed enough to become a non-issue.

When it comes to the injury, the biggest question facing Love and the Packers concerns their under-center usage. Last season, the coaching staff moved toward a more shotgun-heavy approach to help accommodate Love as he battled through knee and groin injuries. The cause for potentially shifting away from under center differs this time around, but the compromises look more or less the same.

Green Bay still had a quality offense overall despite the alterations, but the unit still struggled in certain areas. In particular, the shotgun runs in the low red zone had a success rate of about 31% last year, a below-average figure compared to the rest of the league. In contrast, their under-center runs in the same situations succeeded nearly half the time.

On this matter, the Packers did receive some good news when practice resumed on Wednesday. Love took part in every part of practice, including the team period. He also took snaps from under center for the first time since the surgery. That at least suggests he could recover enough to handle under-center snaps situationally, such as near the goal line.

While we should get a clearer picture of the plan for Love next week, the signs point to the coaches building him up to handle more or less his usual amount of under-center work, or at least enough to make a material difference compared to last season.