GREEN BAY, Wis. — This was not how Matt LaFleur set out to beat the San Francisco 49ers. He didn’t plan to run the ball 42 times. He didn’t figure Jordan Love would need to throw for only 163 yards.
No two game plans are ever the same, but after the way the Green Bay Packers‘ coach called plays in Sunday’s 38-10 win, perhaps LaFleur discovered another way his 8-3 team can win games down the stretch.
He has running back Josh Jacobs and a road-grading offensive line to thank for that.
Jacobs churned out 106 yards (most of them between the tackles) and scored three times (all 1-yard runs) to not only show the rest of the NFL the Packers have another way to win games, but also to remind themselves they need not always to rely on Love to sling it all over the field or their defense to take the ball away.
Some in the home team’s locker room came away believing that a run game like the one they fielded against the 49ers can take the Packers where they want to go.
“Super Bowl,” defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt said. “I mean, if we’re all clicking together as one, Super Bowl. That’s all I can say.”
Jacobs has proved to be worth every penny of the $14.8 million the Packers will pay him this season as part of the four-year, $48 million contract he signed to leave the Raiders in free agency. On Sunday, he did most of his work where it’s often the most difficult: between the tackles, where he rushed for 91 of his yards and all three of his touchdowns.
According to ESPN Research, Jacobs has averaged 80.6 yards per game between the tackles this season, which ranks second in the NFL behind only Saquon Barkley. No Packers player has averaged that many yards between the tackles since ESPN began tracking rush direction in 2006.
“You know that No. 8 out there?” LaFleur said referring to Jacobs by his number. “Did you see how many people he made miss? It was pretty impressive.”
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Josh Jacobs completes hat trick with 3rd TD vs. 49ers
Josh Jacobs barrels into the end zone and picks up his third rushing touchdown against the 49ers to pad the Packers’ lead.
It wasn’t just Jacobs. Backup running back Emanuel Wilson (nine carries for 41 yards) ripped off consecutive runs of 9 and 19 yards on a first-quarter drive that resulted in a field goal and a 10-0 lead.
“I hope moving forward that the run game is something we can always rely on,” center Josh Myers said. “Like if things aren’t working, we always can turn to the run game. I think that’s what the best football teams are able to do, and as we go here, hopefully we’re able to do that more and more and just keeping pushing.”
The Packers have been solid in the run game all season. They came into Sunday’s game ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing yards per game, but with 42 rushes vs. the 49ers, they were committed to it more than any other game this season except for Week 2, when backup quarterback Malik Willis made his first start and the Packers ran it 53 times and threw just 14 passes.
It also meant Love didn’t have to force throws. He played an interception-free game for the first time this season, ending a streak of eight straight games with at least one pick. While he completed only 13 passes (on 23 attempts) for 163 yards, he threw touchdowns to tight end Tucker Kraft and receiver Malik Heath.
“I think it all started with the run game,” Love said. “I think we were making some big plays in the run game. The O-line was doing a great job giving Josh some lanes, and then just handing the ball to 8. Three touchdowns on the ground for him, big night for him. I think it all started up front.”
That all of his happened against a team that started backup quarterback Brandon Allen and was without left tackle Trent Williams and pass rusher Nick Bosa might devalue the win, but it should not deemphasize how they won.
When the Packers went on their run late last season, they averaged the third-most passing yards per game (261.0) over the final eight games. While they were a respectable 11th in rushing yards per game (123.3) over that same stretch, the run game was not their identity.
Perhaps it could be now with Jacobs, who carried 26 times on Sunday despite having to leave briefly to get treatment for cramps. In fact, Jacobs said he told the offensive line that he was cramping so badly before his second and final touchdown that he probably only had one more play in him before he would need some fluids.
“So I was like, we’ve only got one chance for me to score right here because I’m going to the locker room,” Jacobs said.
It helped turn around red zone woes that, heading into the game, had the Packers ranked 27th in touchdown percentage on drives inside the 20. On Sunday, they were a perfect 5-for-5.
“I just told ’em, give me the ball,” Jacobs said laughing. “I think we went in with a great scheme. I think it’s going to be a point of emphasis in this building, trying to be an area to grow in and be better in. So it’s good when you know that you’ve been putting in hard work all week and it’s paying off.”
The question now is what does Jacobs have left for the short turnaround to the Thanksgiving night home game against the Dolphins (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)?
“Luckily for us, we do have confidence in those other two backs,” LaFleur said. “I thought Emanuel Wilson ran really good. [Chris] Brooks has given us some good carries as well. So yeah, we may have to lean on those guys a little bit more next game in a couple days here. But that’s one guy that I don’t worry about is Josh Jacobs. That guy is an animal. He is a dawg and a dawg competitor. He definitely relishes those opportunities.”
