GREEN BAY — Josh Jacobs knows he has massive shoes to fill in Green Bay, on the field and off.
Aaron Jones was one of the most beloved Packers ever for his production between the white lines and persona outside them. The Packers unceremoniously released Jones, who left Green Bay after seven seasons as a surefire future Packers Hall of Famer ranking third in franchise history in rushing yards and fourth in rushing touchdowns. He’s now a Minnesota Viking, with the Packers’ backfield led by Jacobs, who’s more than three years younger than Jones, a 2022 first-team All Pro and second in the NFL in rushing yards and carries since he entered the league in 2019.
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“I already know what kind of guy he is,” Jacobs said of Jones. They spent offseasons training together in Miami.
“Great dude and obviously he’s a legend around here just for what he’s done in his time that he’s been here. I don’t really consider myself coming in and replacing what he’s done. I just try to hold that standard.”
The Packers made the high-profile running back swap after Jones wouldn’t take the significant pay cut requested by the team and now they have a feature back they hope can do what Jones could and then some, and for longer than the one year Jones likely would’ve had left in Green Bay.
After Jacobs led the league in rushing yards in 2022 with 1,653 and added 12 rushing touchdowns to go along with 53 catches and 400 receiving yards while playing all 17 games, his production and availability dipped in 2023. Jacobs played in 13 games and tallied only 805 rushing yards, six rushing touchdowns, 37 catches and 296 receiving yards. Perhaps it was the Raiders’ lackluster offensive line, his own injuries and lack of performance or a shift in the vibes because of Jacobs’ contract situation and Las Vegas’ quarterback uncertainty. Regardless, getting Jacobs back to his All-Pro self of two years ago is of paramount importance for all parties involved in Green Bay.
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) May 29, 2024
“I think he’s a fit in any offense,” head coach Matt LaFleur said. “His running style, he runs extremely hard. He’s really tough to take down. He’s got great hands out of the backfield. I think any time, at least the way we evaluate these runners, you almost have to catch the ball out of the backfield now. He’s great in pass protection. He’s a great teammate, great leader. I’ve enjoyed getting to know him, and so I think there’s a lot of great things he brings to our football team.”
Even as an established elite running back, Jacobs feels the need to prove himself to his new teammates. Not necessarily in games when they come — they’ve already seen from afar what he can do with the lights on — but in everything preceding them.
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That, in part, is how Jones endeared himself to those inside 1265 Lombardi Ave. and earned the “C” on his chest, something that could be in Jacobs’ future as the offense’s oldest skill position player. Jacobs has tried to do the same not by what he says, but by grinding in practice and learning the playbook and teammates’ names quickly, for example.
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“I think that’s very important,” Jacobs said. “It’s big to be able to show and prove myself to the team. I think that’s important no matter what you’ve done in the past. I think it’s important for the guys to see that so they can respect it … because these guys haven’t seen me on the day to day. Sometimes you see the end result, but you don’t see the work it takes to get there.”
Jacobs said “the best thing for me” was the Packers trading wide receiver Davante Adams to the Raiders in 2022 because Adams, one of the league’s best receivers for the past five years, gave Jacobs the blueprint for how to lead. What Adams did for Jacobs as a 24- and 25-year-old is what he wants to do for his younger Packers teammates.
“Getting Josh here, it’s been awesome,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “I’m excited to see him on the field. He’s an awesome player. He’s an awesome teammate so far. It’s been good getting to know him. I’m excited to see what he can do this year.”
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While playoff football is the norm in Green Bay — the Packers have made the second weekend of the playoffs in four of LaFleur’s five seasons in charge — that’s not the case for every team. Jacobs has played in just one playoff game in his five-year career. The Raiders snuck into the postseason under then-interim head coach Rich Bisaccia in 2021 before losing to the Bengals in the wild-card round 26-19. Jacobs ran 13 times for 83 yards and caught four passes for 44 yards that day. It’s an itch that he hasn’t been able to scratch the last two seasons, one that he’s desperate to on a team that gives him a better chance.
So the payday Green Bay gave Jacobs is nice, of course. The numbers he puts up in the regular season will go a long way in determining whether the bold running back switch was a success, too. But the Packers as a franchise under LaFleur and Jacobs as an individual have sniffed greatness but not captured what ultimately defines it. With one of the league’s best running backs and a young team on the brink of Super Bowl contention joining forces, perhaps this is the year to do so for both.
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“When I judge running backs or just players in general, it’s like OK, yeah, you can be good, but are you good when it matters?” Jacobs said. “When it matters the most? In the biggest moments, in the biggest games, that’s where you leave your mark. Being a guy that has a lot of history and especially with the Raiders program, in the top three in almost every category since I’ve been there, it doesn’t really mean nothing because we didn’t win. Being able to leave a legacy is something that I think about now, being older. Playing playoff football and obviously trying to get a ring is the only thing that’s really on my mind.”
(Photo: Cooper Neill / Getty Images)
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