Green Bay’s running back room changed fast on Monday, and the biggest name attached to it won’t be on the field to start the season.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Packers running back Josh Jacobs is being placed on the NFL’s commissioner exempt list, which keeps him from opening the year on the team’s 53-man roster. There is no timetable yet for a possible suspension after news earlier this week that Jacobs was charged with battery and criminal damage to property following an incident involving his girlfriend at his residence.
The Packers had been projecting optimism publicly, at least to a point. After the preseason finale, head coach Matt LaFleur said he expected Jacobs to make the roster, but he stopped short of saying whether the running back would be available in Week 1. “I can’t really comment on that, because I don’t know,” were LaFleur’s final words on the subject.
LaFleur also was not asked if the team or the league has reviewed the alleged video police said they received from the property’s surveillance camera. According to the police report, that footage shows “ the altercation.”
Green Bay has stayed quiet since then. The team did not meet with the media on Saturday or Sunday and won’t on Monday either. The next scheduled opportunity for questions comes Tuesday, when the media will be allowed to take a head count during the stretching and individual portions of practice.
The roster picture at running back also shifted with another move earlier Monday, when Green Bay traded for Kaleb Johnson from the Pittsburgh Steelers. The expectation now is that the Packers will move into the regular season with MarShawn Lloyd, Johnson and Chris Brooks at the position.
A statement attributed to Jacobs said: “Josh Jacobs has been placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, which is an administrative procedure used by the NFL while a matter is being reviewed. It is not a final determination.
Josh respects the NFL process, the Packers, and his Coaches and Teammates. He looks forward to his return to the team and the NFL.”
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