The Green Bay Packers’ 2026 season has opened in rough shape, and the noise around Josh Jacobs is only making it harder to see a clear path forward. Jordan Love’s slow start and the offense’s lack of balance have already put the team in a bind, but Jacobs’ ongoing legal situation has left Green Bay stuck in limbo. He remains on the commissioner’s exempt list, and any possible return is still purely hypothetical.
That uncertainty has left the Packers offense looking unfinished. Green Bay can’t fully move on, but it also can’t count on Jacobs to provide the balance the unit needs. The result is an offense that feels frozen in place, with the franchise waiting on an answer that may never come.
At this point, the cleanest move is to stop waiting and make a change. The Packers need at least one meaningful addition to the backfield because the current options are not meeting expectations. If Green Bay wants a real chance to steady the season, it has to act like a team in need of a reset.
There are possible trade targets to watch over the next month, including Tyler Allgeier and Alvin Kamar. However the Packers choose to address the position, the larger point is the same: they need to move on from Jacobs and end the suspense.
Keeping him in the background only adds to the feeling that this offense will never fully take the next step. Cutting ties would give Green Bay a chance to build a more complete attack without the constant question of whether Jacobs might eventually return.
The financial piece makes that decision easier. Releasing Jacobs would come with a $3.1 million dead cap hit and would still leave the Packers with room to make a move before this year’s trade deadline. That kind of flexibility matters, especially with the team already in desperation mode.
Even before this rough start, it was fair to argue that turning the page was the right call. Now it looks even more obvious. The Packers need to clear away the uncertainty, stop hoping for a return that appears unlikely, and find a backfield answer that actually fits the offense they’re trying to build.
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