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Improving the offensive line should help Jacobs put up a more impressive second season with the team.
There’s no question that Josh Jacobs was a difference-maker for the Green Bay Packers last season. The newly-arrived running back had a Pro Bowl season, posting 1,329 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground while adding another 342 receiving yards and one more score.
Jacobs’ rushing total was good for fifth-most in a single season in Packers franchise history. However, the Packers often leaned on the run to the extreme throughout 2024 and his yards per carry average of 4.4 was rather lackluster. Indeed, that mark matched the league average last season and ranked him 18th running backs with at least 120 carries.
It is also a far cry from the seasons when Aaron Jones was putting up well over five yards per carry, such as in 2020 (5.5) and 2022 (5.3) — although Jones notably was right in the same ballpark as Jacobs last season at 4.5.
In any case, the Packers need to find ways to use Jacobs more efficiently moving forward. He has 1,839 touches in his six-year NFL career, which is more than Jones has in eight NFL seasons. Although Jacobs only had 299 touches in college and entered the league at just 21 years old, that’s still a big professional workload, and the Packers would be wise to find ways to spell Jacobs while also setting him up for success.
One way that they are trying to do so is by beefing up their offensive line. The addition of Aaron Banks is clearly a sign that they are looking to become a more powerful run-blocking team, which could only help Jacobs. Last season he finished fifth in the NFL in rushing yards over expected and tenth in RYOE per carry, a sign that he outperformed the blocking performance by the line. If this revamped line can do a better job in front of him and the Packers can keep him a bit more fresh throughout the season, Jacobs could have an even more impressive second season with the team.
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