MarShawn

Lloyd

It’s possible this is just a maintenance-related coaching decision, but it is still slightly concerning. Injuries have limited Lloyd to just 10 offensive snaps through two NFL seasons. Packers starting RB Josh Jacobs was arrested on Tuesday and was not present on Wednesday, allowing the backups to take first-team snaps. Per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, Lloyd “took part in team drills during Tuesday’s closed session but did only individual work Wednesday.” Packers RB Chris Brooks began team drills with the first-team offense before subbing out for RB Pierre Strong. The Packers had the day off on Thursday and will resume practicing tomorrow. The Packers “remain optimistic that the powerful and speedy Lloyd can repay the team for their patience,” but he needs to retake the field soon if he hopes to prove his reliability. Hopefully, Lloyd is back in action.

Jacobs this week was arrested in Wisconsin on domestic abuse chargers. The 28-year-old back was booked in jail for battery, criminal damage to property, disorderly conduct, strangulation and suffocation, and intimidation of a victim. Jacobs denies the allegations. If the Packers were to release Jacobs — who has two years and $25 million remaining on his current deal — they would absorb a doable $6.2 million hit to the salary cap for 2026. Jacobs could be facing team and/or league discipline in the coming months, and could miss part of the regular season if the NFL’s investigation into the domestic abuse allegations warrants a suspension. Other running backs on the Packers depth chart include Chris Brooks, MarShawn Lloyd, and Pierre Strong.

Hard to blame him for coming to this conclusion given how injury-cursed MarShawn Lloyd’s career has been thus far, and Schneidman casts Chris Brooks as “a fine situational No. 3 back.” One thing worth noting is that this is regarded as a fairly shallow running back class, so it’s possible that the Packers would have to use a premium pick on one if they wanted a ready-to-play backup in 2026. Schneidman’s “best guess” is that they’ll use a “middle of the draft” pick on one.

This is a “procedural move” that will potentially allow the team to activate him later this season, in the event that they make a playoff run. Lloyd, 24, has had a brutal start to his career, plagued by lower-body injuries. He was placed on injured reserve after straining a hamstring in training camp. While rehabbing that injury, he picked up a calf injury. He then suffered another hamstring injury after the Packers activated him to return from injured reserve a couple of weeks ago. He should not be rostered in re-draft formats.

Lloyd has to be activated this week or lost to injured reserve for the rest of the season. The second-year third-round pick did not play a single NFL snap for the Packers this year as he never was able to get all of his various injuries healed at the same time. LaFleur added “It’s very, very, very unfortunate, because this guy has worked his ass off.” Lloyd isn’t a must-drop in dynasty leagues, but with Emanuel Wilson showing well against the Vikings in Josh Jacobs’ one absence this year, there’d certainly appear to be no reason for Lloyd to be handed the backup role when healthy.

Brutal. The Packers placed Lloyd on injured reserve with a hamstring injury in late August. He picked up a calf injury while on the injured reserve list, delaying his return. The Packers opened his 21-day practice window on December 1st. He resumed practicing in a limited capacity after that, but was sidelined today, and is now listed with a new hamstring injury. The development could jeopardize his rest-of-season availability.

Lloyd got in three limited sessions and seems to not yet be close to returning. He was designated to return earlier this week and is probably more of a threat to return in Week 16 or Week 17. When he does come back, he’ll just be Josh Jacobs’ caddy — if that — after Emanuel Wilson’s impressive performance in Jacobs’ absence against the Vikings.

Lloyd was placed on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury. He is, almost unbelievably, now rehabbing a calf injury. Lloyd is a very capable player, but he is tough to trust as a bench stash at this point. Fellow backup RB Emanuel Wilson has proven himself as a reliable backup, and he would likely be in line to start if Josh Jacobs were to miss time. Stashing Lloyd is a bet on talent, not health.

Lloyd has been on injured reserve the entire year. He went down with a hamstring issue a few weeks before the start of the season and has been out ever since. The Packers will likely give him a week or two to ramp up to game speed. Even when he is healthy, we expect Emanuel Wilson to operate as Josh Jacobs’ backup.

Lloyd has yet to take a snap in 2025. The second-year back landed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury to start the season, and has been working his way back ever since. Injuries have completely derailed the start to Lloyd’s career, as he’s appeared in just one game since being drafted 88th overall by the Packers last season. Even if he does work his way back to the field this season, he’ll likely be buried behind both Josh Jacobs and Emanuel Wilson on the depth chart.