The Green Bay Packers have some work to do with their roster this offseason. While this is the case every year, Green Bay can at least take solace in the fact that this year’s roster questions are not as dire or carry as big of financial implications as they did in the past. Gone is Aaron Rodgers’ three-year $150 million contract and the $40 million dead cap hit they carried last season because of it.
That being said, there are several positions on both sides of the ball that the team needs to address. On defense, for instance, the team is in dire need of answers at the safety position. Darnell Savage, Rudy Ford, and Jonathan Owens are all free agents, leaving Anthony Johnson Jr., a seventh round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, as their lone real option at the position.
Offensively, the Packers are fortunate to have most of their answers already. Jordan Love proved that he is the next franchise quarterback after a stellar 2023 season. The team’s young wide receiving group may not have had a bonified number-one, but they had one of the most balanced passing attacks in the NFL last season.
One position that is up in the air, however, is that of backup running back. Aaron Jones will be back in 2024, according to Brian Gutekunst, but AJ Dillon is a free agent. Should Green Bay choose not to re-sign him, they will be in need of a second running back to help keep Jones fresh and healthy throughout the season.
PFF Names the Green Bay Packers as a Potential Landing Spot for Running Back Josh Jacobs
In an article in which PFF names two potential destinations for each free agent running back, they listed the Packers as a potential fit for 2022 NFL rushing leader Josh Jacobs:
“Green Bay was reportedly one of the teams calling about Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor before he eventually signed an extension, and A.J. Dillon is a pending free agent while Aaron Jones is still uber-efficient despite missing a lot of time in 2023.”
Jacobs, who will be 26 next season, is coming off of a year in which he rushed for 805 yards on 233 attempts (3.5 yards per carry) in 13 games. He also had six rushing touchdowns.
By comparison, Dillon had 613 rushing yards on 173 carries (3.4 yards per carry) and two rushing touchdowns.
Are the Green Bay Packers Really Serious Contenders to Sign Josh Jacobs?
While Brian Gutekunst has said that he is willing to use free agency more this offseason than in the past (thanks to having more money to play with) to help improve the Packers’ roster, it is hard to see him seriously considering adding Jacobs as a second running back to pair with Aaron Jones.
While Jacobs had a down year in 2023, he did lead the NFL with 1,653 yards in 2022 and has three 1,000+ yard seasons in his five-year career. In other words, he is going to make about as much in free agency as a running back might hope to make. With Jones coming back in 2024, it is hard to believe that the Packers would pay top dollar for a running back that will not even be their premier back.
Instead, the Packers will likely look for Dillon’s replacement (if they decide not to bring him back)/Jones’ successor in this year’s NFL Draft. There are several talented backs to be had in the middle-to-late rounds, including Wisconsin Badgers running back Braelon Allen.
While Jacobs to the Packers may sound like a fun idea, it simply does not fit with the way Green Bay has run their organization in the past.
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