NFL Free Agency Preview: Potential Targets for Packers

With the start of NFL free agency just days away, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst has work to do at running back. Or at least plenty to consider.

In 2024, he signed Josh Jacobs in free agency and drafted MarShawn Lloyd. Jacobs has been superb, but Lloyd can’t get on the field, let alone stay on the field, due to a mile-long list of injuries.

There are questions throughout the depth chart, starting with Jacobs, who is entering Year 3 under contract with considerable wear and tear on a body that never ducks for cover. There are questions about the rest of the depth chart, too.

Here is a Packers-centric look at free agency, with Part 2 focusing on the running backs.

Any Packers in Free Agency?

The Packers will have two unrestricted free agents. Last year’s top backups, Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks, are scheduled to be restricted free agents. The team reportedly chose not to give Wilson a restricted free agent tender, which will make him an unrestricted free agent when the negotiating period begins on March 9. The same almost certainly will be true for Brooks.

Wilson was one gigantic negative-yardage run against Minnesota away from having back-to-back 500-yard seasons. That’s not exactly rare production but it’s nothing to sneeze at, either. When starter Josh Jacobs was out of the lineup or needed a breather, Wilson typically delivered. With Jacobs out against the Vikings at Lambeau, Wilson rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns.

While his yards per carry plunged from 4.9 to 4.0, that was true with Jacobs and Brooks, as well; the issues in the backfield started with the blocking and scheme.

“I always tell him, just trust your instincts,” said Jacobs, one of Wilson’s biggest supporters. “You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t a baller and just trust your instincts and when you make a decision, be decisive in that decision. You could tell he’s playing with that confidence, and confidence is a big thing in this league.”

Brooks was the No. 3 back for a second consecutive season. He carried 27 times for 106 yards, his average falling from 5.1 to 3.9. Most of the production came at Minnesota in Week 18, when he rushed 13 times for 61 yards.

Against blitz-heavy defenses, Brooks was the go-to back on passing downs. Plus, he tied Zayne Anderson for the team lead in special-teams tackles.

Packers Free Agent Outlook

Josh Jacobs is entering Year 3 of his four-year, $48 million contract, with his cap number rising to $14.54 million for 2026. That ranks fourth at the position and seventh on the team. Unless there’s a shocking pivot, as was the case when general manager Brian Gutekunst dumped Aaron Jones to sign Jacobs in free agency two years ago, Jacobs will be back atop the depth chart.

“Josh is a warrior. Really important part of our football team,” Gutekunst said last month. “Everything that he brings to us on the field, in the locker room, he’s an important part and I think he’s got a lot of good years left.”

It will be interesting to see how and when Gutekunst addresses the backfield. MarShawn Lloyd, the team’s third-round pick in 2024, played 10 snaps as a rookie and not at all last season. Gutekunst isn’t going to dump the injury-prone Lloyd this offseason but he probably feels like he needs to add some sort of explosive/change-of-pace back who can catch the ball. Will that be in free agency or the draft?

Free Agent Running Backs Who Could Interest Packers

As long as Josh Jacobs is on the roster, the Packers probably won’t be looking for a No. 1 back. But, considering they released the “heartbeat” of the team, Aaron Jones, in 2024 after signing Jacobs, you never know. The Packers could save $8.29 million in 2026 by releasing Jacobs. That money could easily buy a different back.

Here are some running backs the Packers could consider. (Ages are as of Sept. 1 and are in parentheses.)