In his first season with Green Bay, Josh Jacobs ran for 1,329 yards and 15 touchdowns on 301 carries and caught 36 passes for 342 yards and one touchdown as the Packers won 11 games in 2024.
And there’s more where that came from, the former Alabama running back said.
“I mean, obviously, every year it’s a new team,” Jacobs said. “We got new goals and things like that. But I feel like I left a lot on the table. I feel like I had a good year, but I feel like I still left a lot on the table, so for me, man, just trying to come in and chase that No. 1 spot and raise a Super Bowl at the end of the day. That’s the only thing that’s really on my mind.”
Jacobs said he “left a lot on the table” even though he finished sixth in rushing yards and sixth in yards from scrimmage in the NFL last season.
“I had like 300-some yards called back,” Jacobs said. “But not only that, it was a few plays where I had some one-on-ones where if I made that one-on-one, made a person miss or broke that tackle, it was a difference between a 20-yard gain and a 60-yard gain. So them little things like that, I feel like that’s what makes people elite, so that’s the thing I try to come in this offseason and work on.”
Jacobs said he thought it was possible to get better six years into his career.
“For me, it’s more just about being conscientious of it in the game,” Jacobs said. “It’s not giving up on plays. It’s just when I’m tired, still giving maximum effort, things like that, so conditioning and things like that was probably the biggest thing I came in trying to do, just trying to build the calories to be able to sustain a long season.”
Green Bay opened the playoffs last season with a 22-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, who went on to win Super Bowl LIX.
“Just to see them, obviously, the Eagles go win a Super Bowl,” Jacobs said, “and, in my opinion, we played them the best out of any team last year. And we was banged up a lot at the end. So for me, seeing how close we are is just about figuring out what we need to do to take that next step to get over the hump. And like I said, it all comes down to putting in the work, putting in the time. Obviously, we added some pieces on offense and defense, and, hopefully, we can all marry together and see how it goes.”
The Packers will conclude their offseason program this week with mandatory minicamp on Tuesday through Thursday. They’ll resume practice at training camp on July 23.
Jacobs said he thinks the Packers are heading toward “a good year.”
“I would say from this year to last year, you could tell guys is definitely a little more hungry,” Jacobs said. “You could tell guys is putting a lot of time in this offseason to work on their craft. And they’re coming in, hitting the ground running, so man, I’m excited for them. I’m excited to see what they do.”
