One of the best running backs in the NFL, Josh Jacobs, has eaten his way back to form after a poor season in Las Vegas, now returning to the Green Bay Packers looking a lot like 2022 when he led the NFL in rushing and earned All-Pro honors with the Raiders. Jacobs never had any doubts he would produce for his new team. He’s been proving it again and again for the Packers (10-4), who host the New Orleans Saints (5-9) on Monday night.
Josh Jacobs entered the playoffs again after Green Bay defeated New Orleans 34-0 and secured a playoff berth. This is Jacobs’s second foray into the NFL playoffs, following an appearance during the 2021 season with the Las Vegas Raiders. Packers: 11-4. Following the game, Jacobs was seen celebrating his return to the playoffs by cameras.
He yelled into a lens, “Hey man, back in Lambeau aka the Mecca, got another dub, punched that ticket, go Pack go! Let’s go!” Jacobs joined the Packers on a four-year, $48 million deal this offseason. He has lived up to that contract so far. Jacobs has a record of 1,216 yards and 13 touchdowns in 15 games, with 35 passes for 340 yards and another score. On Monday night, he had 60 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, plus four catches for 38 yards. He will likely return in the playoffs and is playing his best down the stretch.
Jacobs, currently ranked third in the league, has rushed for 1,147 yards, following Philadelphia’s Saquon Barkley and Baltimore’s Derrick Henry. “I mean, he’s an animal out there,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “Very few times do I feel like when we give him the ball, he doesn’t make the first guy miss.”
Jacobs had a productive 2023 season, rushing for 805 yards and gaining 3.5 yards per attempt, both career lows. He entered free agency and joined the Packers, playing for a contender. His only playoff experience came in the 2021 season, when Packers special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia was the Raiders interim head coach.
“We all loved Rich,” Jacobs recalled. “We all wanted to play for Rich and win for him and win for each other. That’s how I’ve felt from Day One here. Everybody came in, everybody vibed with each other, everybody’s willing to give extra to each other. That’s the thing that I compare it to. I’m just ready to play playoff football. Obviously, I’m taking it week by week right now, but I can’t wait for that day.”
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As a freshman in Alabama in 2016, Jacobs shared playing time with Damien Harris and Bo Scarbrough, rushing 85 times for 567 yards and four touchdowns. As a sophomore in 2017, he had 284 yards on 46 carries with one touchdown. After the season, it was revealed that he had been playing on a broken ankle for most of the season. As a sophomore, he earned the title of MVP at the 2018 SEC Championship Game against the Georgia Bulldogs, having run for 83 yards with two touchdowns.
