Josh Jacobs is headed for surgery, and the Packers are bracing for another stretch without their lead back.
Green Bay announced that Jacobs will undergo a procedure on the fractured right ring finger he injured in the first quarter of Sunday’s 45-27 win over the New England Patriots. The team expects him to miss no more than three weeks, and it does not currently plan to place him on short-term Injured Reserve.
The injury happened when Jacobs’ hand got caught in the face mask of Patriots safety Craig Woodson during a rushing attempt. The Packers initially explored whether he could keep playing with the fracture, but that option was ruled out once it became clear he could not safely grip the football. He sat out the rest of the game.
Jacobs had only recently returned to action. He came back in Week 7 after missing the first six games of the season while on the NFL’s Commissioner’s Exempt List.
That absence followed an offseason arrest and a no-contest plea to misdemeanor charges of battery and property damage. Green Bay officially removed him from the exempt list on October 19 and activated him to the active roster on October 24.
In the three games since his return, Jacobs has logged 36 carries for 80 rushing yards and one touchdown. He also has 11 catches on 13 targets for 68 yards and two scores.
The off-field situation around Jacobs has also grown more serious. Newly released police records from the Hobart-Lawrence Police Department included additional allegations against him, saying that three more women contacted law enforcement to report historical domestic and physical abuse allegations. The league has not taken action so far.
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