Paul Bretl | 10/28/2024
GREEN BAY, Wis. — When Jordan Love exited Sunday’s game in the third quarter with a groin injury, the Packers turned to Josh Jacobs on offense to help guide them to victory in Jacksonville.
“He’s a stud, isn’t he,” Matt LaFleur said post-game. “He is a pro’s pro. I can’t say enough great things about him. We’re lucky to have a guy like that. the way he comes in and communicates and works and demands it of himself but demands it of others as well.”
On the day, Jacobs finished with 127 rushing yards on 25 attempts–averaging 5.1 yards per carry–with two touchdowns. Of those 127 yards, 74 came after contact, according to ESPN, with Jacobs averaging a season-high 3.0 yards after contact on Sunday.
Without question, it was a good day. However, without Love under center, it was Jacobs’ ability for the offense to lean on him in the second half and some chunk runs that took some of that playmaking burden off of Malik Willis’ shoulders.
“Man, Josh is different,” said Chris Brooks after the game. “We all see what Josh does. What he brings to the table is everything. It’s good for young guys like me and E to look at that and get better looking at him.”
Of Jacobs’ total production mentioned above, 14 of those carries and 88 of those yards came with just over five-minutes remaining in the third quarter when Willis entered the game.
This included multiple rushes of at least five yards, three other carries of eight yards, 11 yards, and 12 yards, and, of course, the 38-yard touchdown run, where Jacobs made a few defenders miss.
“It looked nifty to me, too,” said Willis of Jacobs run. “It was awesome. I love to see him go out there and do his thing. As you see, he’s a great running back. He’s doing a great job for us and glad he got his first receiving touchdown last week.”
That eight-play scoring drive in the third quarter, where Jacobs touched the ball on five of those plays, came at a crucial time with Jacksonville having just scored on their last possession to take a 17-13 lead.
While Jacobs’ touchdown run will be what stands out from that drive, he was instrumental in getting it going as well. Three straight rushes to begin the possession picked up a Packers’ first down. He then had a five yard run on the ensuing first down play to help keep Willis and the offense ahead of the sticks and in a manageable down-and-distance. Willis then picked up the second first down on a completion to Dontayvion Wicks.
“I kept telling them the whole game, I like all of them,” Jacobs said at his locker. “I liked all the runs. Even when they were tackling me, it was like I’m going down but I’m a step away from getting out of it. I just kept telling them – just trust me. It played out how it did.”
Whatever the Packers’ offense has needed from Jacobs in a specific week, he has provided. His workload at times has ebbed and flowed depending on the gameplan as well as the in-game situations at hand, but Jacobs provides the Packers with a workhorse-type back, who like on Sunday, can shoulder the weight of the offense when needed.
In addition to that, his effectiveness as both an outside-zone runner and a gap scheme back creates a deeper playbook for LaFleur to leverage, and only further stresses the opposing defense. Not only do opponents have to account for Jacobs and the run game, but how the Packers’ decide to attack defenses on the ground can vary from play-to-play.
“Josh is a very consistent piece to the offense,” said offensive coordiantor Adam Stenavich. “As far as just getting him the ball and if you see, as games go on, just how much better his production gets throughout the game and I think he’s a physical kind of runner.
“He’s very instinctive, really good vision and he does a good job breaking tackles and I think that run style, as a game goes on, wears on defenses. So yeah, he’s everything I thought we were getting. He’s a very big piece of our offense for sure.”
On and off the field, Jacobs is the player–and person–that the Packers thought they were getting. He’s a physical runner, who is also able make defenders miss with his rare ability to change directions at the flip of a switch. Through eight games, he is among the most productive ball carriers in football this season.
Off the field, as passing game coordinator Jason Vrable spoke about recently, Jacobs is a leader and a tone-setter at practice, with every rep at all positions having to be game-like. He’s competitive, “says the right words at the right time,” sets an example through his work ethic and approach each week.
“My goal coming into this game was to inspire the playcaller, inspire the team,” Jacobs said. “Whatever that looks like, I just wanted to come in and run hard. Have the guys trust in me. It just played out that way. Unfortunately, Jordan got hurt. I just wanted to come in and make a statement that we could still win games running the ball. We can still win games however we want if we lock into the details and things like that.”