GREEN BAY, Wis. – Josh Jacobs was sitting at his Las Vegas Raiders reunion when the Jordan Love movie started.
A running back…watching film of the opposing quarterback?
This clip was so spectacular that then-coach Josh McDaniels queued it up for the entire team to watch as the Raiders prepared for the Green Bay Packers last October.
With 12:21 left in the third quarter against the Chicago Bears, Love faked a handoff to running back Aaron Jones and rolled to his left.
Then, with Bears defensive tackle Justin Jones approaching, Love threw a back-shoulder pass to Jones on the right side of the backfield. Fueled by downfield blockers, Jones closed the 5 yards to the line of scrimmage and then the next 3 yards to the line to gain. Soon, it exploded 51 meters above the right touchline.
The play was impressive. But in the months that followed, Jacobs’ mind also focused on how the wave began.
“I remember the play like it was yesterday,” Jacobs told Yahoo Sports on Tuesday from his new locker room in Green Bay. “He played the numbers disappearing on one leg. He was on the money, like a dart. [I thought,] ‘Yes man. He got it.’
“You only really see [Patrick] Mahomes does that, so I’m like, ‘Man, he has the potential to be special.'”
When the Packers approached Josh Jacobs in free agency, he remembered this clip — and what it would mean to play with Jordan Love.
“You only see Mahomes do it,” Josh told me. “So I thought, ‘Man, he has the potential to be special.’
“Yes man. He got it.” pic.twitter.com/aCvwVbxGgU
-Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) July 24, 2024
Coming from a team with a bottom-10 passing attack, Jacobs considered the surrounding talent as well as the opportunity when he reached free agency. He says “10 to 12” teams have sought to retain the services of the 2022 NFL rushing champion.
After watching how instability at quarterback challenged his own team in 2023, he was eager to join a competitive team with an answer at quarterback. (Love has not yet practiced in training camp as he awaits a new contract. But Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said Monday that “we know he is our franchise quarterback and we are ready to move forward. It is not as if we were trying to make that decision.”)
“After we played with him, I kind of followed him,” said Jacobs, whose connections to the team included special teams coach and former Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia. “They started to progress and get better and better. I was like, ‘Yeah, this guy is going to be good.'”
In his Packers uniform, Jacobs has the opportunity to be there too.
The Raiders’ 2019 first-round draft pick posted three 1,000-yard seasons in his first four years, rushing for 1,653 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns in 2022. He dropped to 805 yards (11th in the league) and six touchdowns last season amid a quadriceps injury, resistance in training camp and instability in both the quarterback and head coach.
What would your role be like with the Packers?
“Man, I love it because I feel like it’s limitless,” Jacobs said. “I feel like I can really go almost as far as I want and they’re giving me the opportunity and that’s what I like most: I can go out there to show that I can catch the ball and run routes and [more].”
With Jones gone, Jacobs is expected to become the best running back in an offense after two playoff games with 61 total carries. The Packers also benefited from 613 rushing yards and two touchdowns last season from 2020 second-round pick AJ Dillon, although his 3.4 yards per carry trailed Jones’ 4.6.
Jacobs averaged a career-low 3.5 yards per carry last year, though he hopes a healed quadriceps and more receivers commanding defensive attention will change that trend this season.
Developing chemistry with the offensive line will also be key once padded practices begin.
“Learning when he’s going to cut, when he’s going to pressure his point of aim and hit it to the outside, the nuances of his game, we’re going to have to figure that out together,” center Josh Myers told Yahoo Sports. “I’m not going to sit here and say I know now. But he is an excellent football player.”
And someone perfectly aware of the value they need to provide in the midst of a market that is difficult to return value.
A year ago, Jacobs, Saquon Barkley and Tony Pollard sought security beyond the franchise tags the Raiders, New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys gave them, respectively.
Now, each one is preparing for a season with a new team.
“Understand it’s a business, don’t take it personally, just be smart and very calculating in your next moves,” Jacobs said of his advice to running backs. “On the field, the more you can do, the better you are – so try to develop your game.
“If you feel you are weak in this area, try to choose the area and be at the best level possible.”
And be ready at all times, in case a Love Cross Disappearance comes your way.
