Running back Josh Jacobs was given a four-year, $48 million contract this past offseason by the Green Bay Packers to be their bell-cow back.
He's big and strong enough to carry the load of an offense and he's a proven commodity having been an All-Pro with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022. He put up 2,053 total yards of offense and 12 touchdowns during that epic season.
Jacobs is an ideal anchor to lean on for a team with a quarterback working his way back into game shape like the Packers' Jordan Love. But, inexplicably, Jacobs touched the ball only nine times as a rusher in Green Bay's 31-29 loss to the Minnesota Vikings this past weekend.
Yes, he did snag four catches as a receiver and yes, the Packers were (successfully) trying to come back from a 28-7 halftime deficit, which doesn't lead to a ton of rushing attempts. Still, asking Love to throw 58 passes in his first game back from an MCL injury feels like coaching malpractice, especially in light of only nine rushes from Jacobs.
Green Bay's star running back was asked after the loss if he feels he needs to see the football more.
"I’m not going to say that. I would say, when things are going right, definitely 15 (carries in a game),” Jacobs said, according to Ryan Wood of USA Today. “Definitely when things are going right, but how the game played out, I understand the direction they wanted to go in. We were trying to make plays with a little bit of time. We were trying to climb back. So I understand that.”'
Jacobs may have understood the assignment against the Vikings, but the Packers, without a doubt, need a heavy dose of him in the coming weeks in order to right the ship.
He is seventh in the NFL in rushing attempts (71) and rushing yards (329), but he hasn't found the end zone yet as either a rusher or a receiver.
The 1-2 Packers need that to change, ASAP.
