Fantasy Football Week 7: The case for starting Packers RB Josh Jacobs

It's been a rough season for fantasy football owners as it relates to injuries.

Several stars have gone down and left roster holes in their wake. Quarterbacks Caleb Williams, Baker Mayfield and Lamar Jackson have all missed time. Wideout AJ Brown has been dealing with an ankle sprain. That's not even to mention injuries to players like Jaxson Dart, De'Von Achane and Jayden Reed, among others.

There's also been the case of Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs, who hasn't been injured but has missed the first six games of the 2026 season while on the commissioner's exempt list. Jacobs was involved in an alleged domestic dispute in the spring. Legally, he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of battery and criminal damage to property.

Jacobs is now off the exempt list and is back at Packers practice. There's also the expectation that he'll play in Week 7 against the Detroit Lions, though not everybody believes he's worth the roster spot as it relates to fantasy football.

This is despite the fact that he's a former All-Pro and the Packers' rushing attack desperately needs an infusion of talent. They currently have the worst run offense in the league.

For instance, Liz Lota of ESPN characterizes Jacobs as a "fringe RB2" heading into this week.

"There's a clear expectation that Jacobs' return will restore stability to the backfield. How long that takes remains another matter, however," she wrote. "The 28-year-old suffered a noticeable statistical drop-off during the second half of last season, and his overall workload was reduced as the year progressed. Because Jacobs will likely need to shake off rust, and given that the Lions defense is much stingier against the run than the pass, managers need to temper their expectations ahead of his 2026 debut."

That's a logical take from Lota, and it does have facts to back it up. The Detroit Lions are last in the NFL in passing defense, giving up 297.4 yards per game through the air. Meanwhile, they're a middle-of-the-pack rushing defense, giving up just 107 yards per game on the ground.

Why Josh Jacobs is a good starting RB option in Week 7

With that said, all this "airing out" the Packers offense has done with Jordan Love over the past few weeks is against head coach Matt LaFleur's instincts as a play-caller.

He shoots for balance, like all play-callers, but at the end of the day, his history is that he'd prefer to use the run to set up the pass rather than vice versa. He hasn't been able to do so over the past few weeks of play because of the historically bad nature of Green Bay's rushing attack, but he's also been working with unproven, and simply not great, backs in MarShawn Lloyd, Pierre Strong Jr., Kaleb Johnson and Chris Brooks (who is on injured reserve).

All of those players together equal one Jacobs, essentially, so you can bet that LaFleur is going to be itching to get his star running back the rock early and often to try to reset the tone for his offense.

Jacobs is also one of the best short-yardage backs in the NFL, especially near the goal line, and that's a place the Packers have struggled this season.

He may not get 20-plus carries, but it's also not unreasonable to suggest that LaFleur may lean on Jacobs when Green Bay gets within the Lions' 10-yard line. He may not get 100-plus yards in his return game, but there's also a world in which Jacobs gets five to 10 touches down near the goal line and walks away with a few touchdowns.

As such, and especially if you're thin at running back, Jacobs is worth the fantasy football start in Week 7.