If the Green Bay Packers played their cards right, running back MarShawn Lloyd should be the ace up their sleeve for a playoff run. Lloyd was a third-round pick by the Packers in the 2024 draft but has spent more time on the sidelines than on the field due to a string of injuries.
While Llloyd is currently making his attempt to return from a groin injury suffered in the preseason, there was some light at the end of the tunnel when the Packers opened his 21-day practice window to return from the injured reserve list earlier this week. This, along with the Packers’ decisions in the backfield in recent weeks, makes it feel that Lloyd’s return is imminent. But head coach Matt LaFleur attempted to pump the brakes when discussing the decision to open the practice window on Wednesday.
“I think it’s just to get them integrated back into practice and see where they’re at and take it one day at a time,” LaFleur said via The Leap’s Jason B. Hirschhorn.
Even Matt LaFleur Still Can’t Trust MarShawn Lloyd’s Return to Health
Hearing LaFleur mention “one day at a time” is enough to give Packers fans PTSD. Green Bay has already lived through this comment before as it sorted out its kicking situation between Brandon McManus and Lucas Havrisik. McManus’s quad injury required almost a daily update to see if he was going to play for that week’s game, and even when he did log a full practice, it wasn’t a given he was going to suit up, as he was deactivated the Saturday before the Packers’ Week 11 win over the New York Giants.
But in the case of Lloyd, it might be that LaFleur is telling the truth.
Lloyd’s career has been defined by injuries to date as he’s appeared in just one game nearly two years after coming out of USC. While he brings an explosive element to the Packers’ backfield, he has just six carries for 15 yards and a three yard reception in regular season action.
In fact, his list of injuries has made him just as elusive to Packer fans as he could be to opposing linebackers, which seems to be growing by the minute:
- Torn ACL at South Carolina (2020)
- Hip Injury (2024)
- Hamstring Injury (2024)
- Ankle Injury (2024)
- Appendectomy (2024)
- Hamstring Injury (2024)
- Groin Injury (2025)
- Hamstring Injury (2025)
The Packers could also be keeping their options open. In addition to Lloyd, Green Bay also opened the practice window of edge rushers Brenton Cox and Collin Oliver this week, giving all three players a decision date of Oct. 22. If Lloyd isn’t healthy enough to return, it could result in either Cox or Oliver getting the nod to return and Lloyd having his season shut down before it begins.
With the way the young RB's career has panned out, LaFleur may be thinking that Lloyd could burst into flames (or suffer a more simple injury) the moment he returns to the practice field. It leaves the head coach in the dark just as much as fans who want to see a return on their third-round pick and will have to keep guessing until Lloyd finally suits up for the Packers.