The Green Bay Packers are expected to have running back Josh Jacobs back in the lineup in Week 7. Jacobs was removed from the Commissioner Exempt List on Monday and returned to practice. Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich noted that the team is excited for Jacobs to return and that he looks good in practice.

“Josh [Jacobs] will definitely help, for sure,” said Stenavich on the run game issues. “He’s an excellent player, and he’ll provide some good spark for our offense. So, I’m excited about that. But we just all need to do a better job.”

Jacobs missed the first six games due to misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property charges. Jacobs pleaded no contest to those charges and was fined. The NFL is still continuing its investigation, but for now Jacobs is set to play against the Detroit Lions in Week 7.

Green Bay Packers Excited for Josh Jacobs to Return

The Packers’ rushing attack has been nearly nonexistent this season. MarShawn Lloyd has 48 rushes for 122 yards, which is an average of 2.5 yards per attempt. Kaleb Johnson is second in attempts with 28 for 104 yards.

However, he fumbled in Week 4 and has played 13 snaps in the two weeks since then. With Jacobs back, he is in danger of being inactive.

Pierre Strong has 16 rushes for 35 yards as their passing-down back. He is replacing Chris Brooks, who has 15 rushes for 70 yards. In total, the Packers have 125 rushing attempts for 359 yards. Jacobs is coming off of a down year, but has never had production that inefficient.

Packers Need Jacobs in Week 7

Jacobs is a former first-round pick, going 24th overall. He hit the ground running for the Raiders, carrying the ball 242 times for 1,150 yards as a rookie. The first rounder followed that up with a Pro Bowl season that featured 273 rushes for 1,065 yards.

He was not as efficient in his third NFL season. Jacobs carried the ball 217 times for 872 yards. Then, he had a career-high 340 rushing attempts for 1,653 yards in his fourth NFL season. The Raiders picked up his fifth-year option but did not extend him.

In his last year with the Raiders, Jacobs had 233 rushes for 805 yards. However, that did not stop the Packers from handing him a four-year, $48M contract in free agency. In the first year, they looked smart for the decision.

Jacobs had 301 rushes for 1,329 yards in his first season with the Packers. However, that was followed up by 234 rushes for 929 yards in his second season in Green Bay. Now, his third year has been marred by the NFL investigation.

The Packers can get out of his deal after this year. So, the end of the season is important for Jacobs to secure his 2027 salary. We will see how much he can improve the run game, as the team will likely feature him in Week 7.