Josh Jacobs enters the 2024 NFL season with a new team in the Green Bay Packers, and expectations are sky-high. The Packers finished 2023 strong and a rebuilding year turned into a playoff win in Dallas before they lost 24-21 in the divisional round to the San Francisco 49ers.
After long-time Packers RB Aaron Jones reportedly refused to renegotiate his contract, Green Bay cut him and signed Josh Jacobs in free agency. This was a smooth piece of business by the franchise, as they’ve gotten a younger, equally talented RB to lead the backfield.
A.J. Dillon signing a team-friendly deal shouldn’t affect Jacobs’ fantasy outlook, and he looks primed to bounce back after a disappointing season in Las Vegas in a big way. Jacobs projects to be one of the top running backs in 2024, and as such, is likely to be a late first or early second-round pick in fantasy drafts. If you are looking for a player comparison, he is a safer version of Saquon Barkley and doesn’t have a QB cutting into his rushing TDs.
Josh Jacobs’ 2024 NFL fantasy outlook: What numbers to expect from the Packers RB?
Josh Jacobs missed four games in 2023 and had an up-and-down year with the Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders were a strange team and blew hot and freezing cold under QBs Jimmy Garoppolo, Aidan O’Connell and Brian Hoyer.
Jacobs played on the franchise tag, was not exactly enamored with his situation, and had a down year compared to his electric 2022 season. In 13 games, the RB totaled 805 yards and 6 TDs on the ground, along with 296 yards through the air. This was a bad season for Josh Jacobs, make no mistake about it, but the Raiders were a team in flux and he will be much improved in 2024 if he stays healthy.
It feels reasonable, presuming he avoids injury, to expect 1,200 yards and 9 TDs on the ground in 2024, along with 350 yards and 3 TDs receiving. A really strange stat with Jacobs is that he has yet to score a receiving TD in his five years in the NFL, but that is almost certainly going to change at the Packers.