Packers' Jordan Love plans to play Thursday after injuring his thumb in last year's preseason opener

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love says he doesn't mind playing at least a little in the preseason, even though a thumb injury in an exhibition game last year caused him to miss part of training camp.

Love expects to play in the Packers’ first preseason game Thursday at Pittsburgh. He has played in Green Bay’s preseason opener each of his three previous seasons as a starter and injured his left (non-throwing) thumb in an exhibition game last year with the New York Jets. He ended up undergoing surgery and returned to practice six days later.

“Obviously what happened last year sucked,” Love said Tuesday. “It was very tough. I’m glad that the timeline was what it was, and I was able to be good for Week One. But yeah, it’s definitely one of those things you got to take into consideration going into preseason and everything. Me and (coach) Matt (LaFleur) have talked, and I think the plan is to play some limited role this week and see how it goes going forward.”

Love acknowledges he does play differently in the preseason as compared to the regular season.

“The main thing is to stay healthy, obviously,” Love said. “Avoid taking hits. If you get into a scramble situation, definitely not take any hits outside the pocket, anything like that. But really, it’s just about being smart, trying to get the ball to your hand, find those completions, put together a good drive.”

LaFleur said the plan “as of right now” is for Love to play, though the coach added that “I always have the right to change my mind.”

Love doesn’t expect to play more than one or two series, depending on how that opening possession goes.

LaFleur believes his teams have fared better early in the season in years when his regulars had at least some playing time during the preseason. Love agrees he has benefited from at least making brief exhibition appearances.

“I think it gets you in the right mindset and just gets you back in that real game feel,” Love said.

Green Bay’s preseason opener at Pittsburgh will allow Love and LaFleur to reconnect with former Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who has made no secret regarding his lack of interest in playing preseason games at this stage of his career.

That reunion comes after LaFleur gained attention on social media regarding comments he made regarding the two quarterbacks in an NFL Network interview Monday.

When he was asked about how well Love works at the line of scrimmage before snaps in getting the offense ready, LaFleur replied that “he’s got to be the best I’ve been around in terms of protections and adjustments.” After being reminded that he also had coached Rodgers, LaFleur didn’t back down from his comments and quipped that “Aaron’s going to get mad about this.”

LaFleur was asked again Tuesday to compare the way the two quarterbacks adjusted protections at the line of scrimmage.

“Aaron was phenomenal, too, don’t get me wrong,” LaFleur said. “And I think Jordan really benefited from watching him and how he operated and how quickly he could process things. But I do think our offense has evolved over time, too.”

Love said he hadn’t seen LaFleur’s comments but had been made aware of them. He said that part of his game was “probably the biggest jump” he’s made since the 2020 first-round pick arrived from Utah State.

“In college, we didn’t do anything — we didn’t handle protections,” Love said. “We just threw hot. If we got pressure, we didn’t make any changes to the line of scrimmage. So getting into the NFL, that was the biggest test for me and the biggest area where I just had never done stuff like that.

“So obviously, I think being able to sit behind Aaron and see just the way he was able to control the line of scrimmage, see pressures, make protection adjustments, and pick stuff up was next level, and it gave me something to build up and to see, and be like, ‘Man, that’s what I want to be able to do.’"

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Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) rides a bike to practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) throws a pass during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love, center right, participates in drills during the NFL football team's training camp, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) participates in drills during the NFL football team's training camp, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) participates in drills during the NFL football team's training camp, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

WEST KELOWNA, British Columbia (AP) — A deadly wildfire in Western Canada that has forced some 20,000 people to flee grew overnight even without strong winds, challenging efforts to contain it and fully assess the damage, authorities said Tuesday.

About 100 firefighters from Mexico were on the way to help fight the blaze that's destroyed homes and other properties near Okanagan Lake in British Columbia. The fire has killed an 80-year-old woman and burned toward Summerland, a community of about 12,000 people roughly 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of Vancouver.

The fire showed “quite significant growth” in some areas overnight even without strong winds, said Cliff Chapman, director of provincial operations for the British Columbia Wildfire Service. He added crews were working around the clock to establish control lines and make it safe for evacuated residents to return home.

“We recognized and we heard even last night that people obviously would like to go home. They would like to see the extent of the damage,” Chapman said.

Kevin Dunbar, British Columbia’s executive director for emergency response and recovery operations, called it one of the largest evacuations in recent British Columbia history.

British Columbia officials said they had secured 1,600 hotel rooms and 1,000 group-lodging spaces for evacuees in Okanagan after some residents faced delays getting emergency assistance during the weekend evacuation.

Beyond those already forced to flee, another 10,000 people have been told to be ready to leave on short notice. More than 100 wildfires were burning across the province, and officials warned that dry lightning could spark new fires in the Central Interior and Okanagan. The province also asked the federal government for help expanding lodging for evacuees.

RCMP are investigating whether criminal activity played a role in the fire. Chapman said about 4% of wildfires in British Columbia over the past decade were suspected of having been deliberately set, but officials have not said the Bald Range fire was intentionally started.

Lucille and Gordon Beach of Summerland were in Vancouver for the weekend wedding of a granddaughter when they heard the fire had started. “We didn't feel too celebratory,” Lucille Beach said Tuesday.

The couple, staying for now in West Kelowna with their dog, haven't seen their home since leaving Friday but believed it was OK. It took a few days to adjust to the reality of what was happening, Lucille Beach said.

Carmen Bodzasy evacuated from Summerland, where she and her husband moved recently. She had to navigate evacuating on unfamiliar roads while he was away for work.

Before leaving, “I cried my eyes out for a minute, and I thought, you know what, if I had to restart over, what would I take with me?” She took photos of her parents' wedding, of her children's families and of her and her husband. “I thought if I didn’t have walls to go home to, at least I have memories to put up on my new one,” she said.

Holding her small dog Tuesday, she was not sure of the status of their home but said whatever happens, she intends to stay in Summerland, a place where people wave at passing motorists and stop to ask how you're doing.

“I’ll do whatever I can to help that town rebuild because everybody’s so kind there,” she said.

In the United States, firefighters in California were fighting a blaze that has burned nearly 5 square miles (about 12 square kilometers) in the Big Sur region of the state’s rugged central coast.

Area state parks have closed and evacuation orders have been issued, including for a roughly 7-mile (11-kilometer) stretch of Highway 1, the state’s iconic coastal route. Portions of the highway were closed on Tuesday due to the fire's spread and evacuations, according to the California Highway Patrol.

In Minnesota, a person involved in the fight against a wildfire near the town of Ely died on Tuesday following an unspecified medical emergency. The victim was taken to a hospital for treatment where they died, the Superior National Forest said in a social media statement.

Further details, including the victim’s name, were not immediately released.

At least eight other people have died while helping with wildfires in the U.S. this year, including four firefighters who got trapped in a fire in western Colorado, a bulldozer operator who got overrun by flames in Oregon, two helicopter pilots who crashed while helping fight a fire in Utah and a helicopter pilot in Colorado who crashed into a reservoir.

Gillies reported from Toronto. Associated Press writer Claire Rush contributed from Portland, Oregon.

A firefighter cuts brush to stop the Timber Fire from burning above Deetjen's Inn in Big Sur, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

People float on the Channel Pathway that connects Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake as smoke from wildfires burning in the region fills the air, in Penticton, British Columbia, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

People float on the Channel Pathway that connects Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake as smoke from wildfires burning in the region fills the air, in Penticton, British Columbia, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

The Bald Range wildfire, that has forced people out of their homes in the south Okanagan region, burns in Summerland, B.C., late Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

The Bald Range wildfire, that has forced people out of their homes in the south Okanagan region, burns in Summerland, B.C., late Saturday, Aug.8, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)