Jeremiyah Love: I’m Losing Patience, but I’m Not Giving Up

What’s up family. If you drafted Jeremiyah Love expecting an immediate difference-maker, I don’t need to tell you how frustrating these first five weeks have been. You’ve been staring at the same numbers I have.

RB24. A total of 51.1 PPR points. An average of 10.2 per game. Three games below eight points, including that lovely 2.2-point performance against Detroit. Nothing like spending premium draft capital to get a stat line your kicker could beat.

Now he’s out for Week 6 with an ankle injury. So, no, I’m not going to pretend everything is going according to plan. But there’s a difference between being disappointed in the production and deciding the player cannot produce. I’m down on Love’s start. I’m not ready to bury his season.

What does that draft capital actually buy us?

Arizona selected Love third overall. That should buy opportunity and patience. It does not buy fantasy points automatically.

Let’s look at every running back selected in the top 10 from 2005 through 2025. Here are the ones who finished their rookie seasons inside the top 12 at the position in full PPR:

That’s ten of 15, or approximately 67%. Nine finished inside the top 10. I like those odds for the group. But that doesn’t mean Love has a 67% chance of getting there. We’ve already watched him struggle for five weeks, and now he’s hurt.

And before anybody accuses me of hiding the bad outcomes, here are all five misses:

High picks can absolutely disappoint. Anyone telling you otherwise is selling you comfort instead of analysis.

Historical tables use FantasyPros’ full regular-season PPR totals and season-specific positional finishes. They are not points-per-game rankings or a fixed points threshold. Provider scoring, including return touchdowns, can differ; these are the provider’s published totals. Gibbs was pick 12, so he does not qualify for this top-10 draft sample.

The comparison that matters most

Look at McCaffrey: 435 rushing yards as a rookie, yet a top-10 PPR finish. Why? Eighty receptions. Richardson averaged just 3.6 yards per carry but collected 51 catches and scored 12 rushing/receiving touchdowns. His rookie fantasy season worked even though his career did not become what Cleveland expected.

Love doesn’t need to become a flawless NFL runner overnight. He needs valuable touches. Catches and touchdowns can carry an inefficient back further than empty rushing volume can.

The problem is that he has only 11 catches for 36 yards through five games. That is not the receiving production we need. The encouraging part: Mike LaFleur says the ankle has limited Love’s passing-game involvement, and Arizona still expects him to be a significant contributor there once he is capable. That gives me some hope. But I need to see those catches show up on Sunday before I start counting on them.

There is still a player worth betting on

Love’s final Notre Dame season produced 1,372 rushing yards, 18 rushing touchdowns, and 6.9 yards per carry. Add 27 catches for 280 yards and three more scores. He won the Doak Walker Award and finished third in Heisman voting.

The guy produced. Arizona didn’t just fall in love with a fast 40 time and hope for the best. His explosive college highlights show why Arizona wanted him. But college space and NFL space are different things, and highlights cannot tell us how healthy his ankle is today.

We have already seen one useful glimpse: 21 carries, 90 rushing yards, and five catches against San Francisco in Week 3. Your fantasy lineup got 21.9 points. That is the kind of combined workload that makes the upside argument believable.

Can he be a top-10 back from Week 7 onward?

Now, I’m not saying Love is going to erase these first five weeks and suddenly finish the whole season as RB10. I’m saying he has a real shot at being a top-10 PPR back from Week 7 through Week 17. That’s the stretch I care about for this call.

With Arizona’s Week 14 bye, he would have ten games to do it if he returns in Week 7. If he misses more time, this gets harder. We’re comparing his total points to the other backs over those same weeks. No moving the goalposts later.

So what needs to change? First, get healthy. Then get him involved in the passing game and give him chances near the goal line. Give him 80 rushing yards, four catches, 30 receiving yards, and a touchdown, and you’ve got 21 PPR points. Even without the touchdown, that’s 15. Am I promising that every week? No. But it shows why those catches matter. He doesn’t have to break a 60-yard run to help your lineup.

And remember, those rookie numbers cover full seasons. They don’t prove Love will turn this around after Week 6. They show why I’m willing to give a player with his talent and draft capital more time.

My call

If I have Love, I’m holding him as long as I can afford the bench spot. If somebody in my league is sick of looking at his name, I’m asking what they want for him. But I’m looking for a discount. I’m not paying for the breakout before it happens.

A top-10 PPR finish from Week 7 through Week 17 is still realistic if Love comes back healthy and Arizona starts using him more as a receiver. Would I rank him there today? No. He hasn’t earned that yet. But I can see how he gets there, and I’d rather have him on my bench than watch somebody else benefit after I gave up on him.

Arizona invested like Love is too big to fail. But ask Enron how guarantees work. The draft capital and college résumé justify patience. They do not excuse another two-point Sunday.

Thanks for the read. If you keep reading them, I’ll keep writing them.