When the Green Bay Packers signed Josh Jacobs as an NFL free agent last offseason, they got more than a Pro Bowl running back. They got a “presence,” Packers running back Ben Sirmans said.
“The guy is a dog,” Sirmans said from Green Bay’s offseason program, “not just the way he carries the ball, but also just his presence. Being around really good running backs, they have a presence about them on the field that kind of permeates throughout the team through their game play as well as when they’re in the locker room. Because besides the quarterback, you’re touching the ball probably more than anybody else out there, so you can affect the emotions of the team more than anybody else.
“He’s been everything that we would hope for and definitely the engine for us offensively.”
The Packers feel Jacobs’ presence at practice as well as games, Sirman said.
“The guy looks better this year than he did last year at this point,” Sirmans said. “His quickness right now, his cutting ability, going through drills, exploding, he looks better this year than last year at this time. …
“The way that he practices is the same way that he plays. He’s looking to set the tone every opportunity that he gets and to try to get people to follow and match that type of mentality. It’s hard-pressed to try to take things away from him from that standpoint, but we do have to be conscious because once he’s in there, he’s in there even in practice situations to set the tone for everybody else.”
Last offseason, Jacobs joined the Packers for a four-year, $48 million contract after the former Alabama ball-carrier spent his first five NFL seasons with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders.
Jacobs ran for 1,329 yards and 15 touchdowns on 301 carries and caught 36 passes for 342 yards and one touchdown in 2024. In his fourth 1,000-yard season, Jacobs received his third Pro Bowl invitation.
Jacobs became the first Green Bay player with 300 rushing attempts since Ryan Grant in 2008. Five Packers have carried the football at least 300 times in one season, with Ahman Green doing so twice.
Jacobs recorded the fifth-most rushing yards in Green Bay history in 2024 and had the most since Green set the franchise single-season record with 1,883 in 2003.
Jacobs tied for the third-most rushing touchdowns in one season in the team record book.
The Packers posted an 11-6 regular-season record in the 2024 regular season before falling to the Philadelphia Eagles 22-10 in the first round of the NFC playoffs.
