The 'stay ready' mentality is one of the most important, overlooked factors in professional sports. There are way too many talented players, coaches, and personnel members, and not enough jobs. Someone who deserves their shot will always be waiting in the wings, and if they have the right mentality about it, that patience oftentimes pays off in unexpected ways, as Green Bay Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd is about to learn.
A third-round selection by Green Bay in 2024, Lloyd's NFL career has been downcast by injuries and a loaded running back room that kept him from seeing more than six carries in the pros to this point. But now that Josh Jacobs has been placed on the NFL Commissioner's Exempt List while facing two misdemeanor charges related to a domestic incident, all eyes are on Lloyd, who has been thrust into the Packers' starting running back spot to start the 2026 NFL season.
Whether it's fair or not, Lloyd will go from having almost no workload to becoming a bellcow back for a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations this season. He's skyrocketing up fantasy draft rankings with only two other backs — sophomore Kaleb Johnson coming off a lackluster rookie campaign in Pittsburgh, and Chris Brooks, who was previously considered more of a pass-catching, blocking back — on the active roster.
This signals a ton of trust from the Packers' leadership group in MarShawn Lloyd's ability to step up when they need him most, so the pressure is mounting fast.
This season should tell us everything we need to know about MarShawn Lloyd's future with the Green Bay Packers and in the NFL.
Lloyd only has one season left under contract after this year, and his first few seasons have left plenty to be desired. However, there's plenty of untapped potential left for Lloyd to show off. He's known for being shifty and elusive out of the backfield with the burst to make big plays, as he did with 1,052 scrimmage yards and nine touchdowns in 11 games for USC as a Junior.
It's hard to deny that he's a talented back, and even if Jacobs comes back this season, he'll almost certainly still have a role for the Packers as the 1B or second option. But if Lloyd truly emerges as the talent Green Bay has believed he could be in an expanded role, we could see the Packers grow confident enough to move on from Jacobs as a whole and anoint Lloyd their starting running back moving forward.
The Packers love to draft and develop talent internally, which is what made the Jacobs trade such a big deal in the first place. And while Jacobs has been productive when on the field, he hasn't quite been able to replicate the dominance he once achieved as a 2,000+ yard player with the Raiders. Adding insult to injury, if Jacobs is convicted, the team will likely part ways with him regardless, and if any incriminating evidence pours out into the public, it'll be hard to keep him on the roster.
So whether or not he's ready, this is the chance for MarShawn Lloyd to prove that he's been worth the investment in time, draft capital, and roster space that the Green Bay Packers have made in him for several years leading up to this point.
Lloyd deserves the opportunity he's been presented — now it's up to him to take advantage of it.
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