Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs won’t win the NFL’s MVP award. That doesn’t mean he’s not deserving of consideration, though, because he’s without a doubt the most important player on his team at the moment. Where would the Packers be without Jacobs?
Sure, they’d still be in the playoff hunt because Jordan Love is one heck of a good quarterback, and head coach Matt LaFleur is one of the best play-callers in the NFL. They also have a defense that knows how to make plays thanks to the addition of superstar safety Xavier McKinney and a new, more aggressive scheme run by Jeff Hafley.
So yes, the Packers would have the pieces to be “in the hunt” for the playoffs much as they are now, but even after a tough loss to the Detroit Lions on Thursday Night Football they sure seem to be more than “in the hunt”.
In fact, even with the loss, they’re 9-4 and have won three of their last four. They’re currently the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs, one game ahead of the seventh-seed Washington Commanders and several games ahead of the handful of 6-6 teams behind them. They can also catch up to the fifth-seeded Minnesota Vikings, who they play on December 29 in the second-to-last game of the season.
The Packers’ road to the NFC North crown may be closed thanks to the loss against Detroit, but they’re still very much alive in their hopes to win a Super Bowl this season.
Could that be said if they didn’t have Jacobs running the ball for them? Likely not.
Put it in perspective this way: The Packers basically swapped out Jacobs for Aaron Jones, who had become their beloved lead back over the past few seasons.
Jacobs has rushed 239 times this season for 1,053 yards and 11 touchdowns, eight of which have come in the past four games. Speaking of, he’s played in every game for the Packers, and he’s played a majority of the snaps in every game. Meanwhile, Jones has rushed 184 times for 820 yards and three touchdowns for the Minnesota Vikings. Credit to him, he’s played in every game for the Vikings this season, and that’s big because durability had become a concern for him.
Still, that’s a difference in 55 rushes, 233 yards and eight touchdowns in the same amount of games played when comparing Jacobs to Jones.
Josh Jacobs brings toughness to the Green Bay Packers
There are also intangibles to consider. The Packers have played their best football when they’ve been “ground and pound” on offense, focusing on getting Jacobs the football and allowing him to both grind out yards and grind the lock. He’s been especially important to them in the red zone over the past four weeks. All eight of his touchdowns have been red zone scores, which have allowed the Packers to take what was a weakness earlier in the season and turn it into a strength.
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Yes, they lost against the Lions on Thursday Night Football, but their toughness was on full display as was their ability to go back-and-forth with arguably the best team in the NFL — and much of that had to do with Jacobs being able to set the tone.
The Packers have what it takes to win out and finish the season 13-4 and even make a run to the Super Bowl. It all starts and ends with Jacobs, for them, though. If LaFleur keeps feeding him the ball, they’ll keep on competing and ultimately, winning. He’s that important to their team, and that can be said for only a handful of players in the NFL this season.
Again, he’s not going to win it. The MVP is likely to go to Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, or even Jared Goff. Running back Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles has been bantered about as a potential MVP this season, though, and it’s worth noting that Jacobs’ numbers are similar to Barkley’s — who has rushed 246 times for 1,499 yards and 11 touchdowns heading into Week 14. Derrick Henry of the Baltimore Ravens is also another MVP candidate with 240 rushes for 1,407 yards and 13 touchdowns to his name heading into Week 14.
Whenever Barkley and Henry have been mentioned this season, Jacobs has been right there along with them. He’s earned every bit of his four-year, $48 million contract this year and without him, the Packers would not be where they were right now, or where they want to be in the future.
In the conversation? Jacobs has to be.