GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – AUGUST 28: Josh Jacobs #8 of the Green Bay Packers looks on against the Arizona Cardinals in the first quarter during a preseason game at Lambeau Field on August 28, 2026 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Packers must move forward without Josh Jacobs, who was placed on commissioner’s exempt list
Aug 30, 2026, 2:37 PM CT
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Green Bay Packers starting running back Josh Jacobs will not be on the field for the team’s season opener in two weeks and is likely to be out longer, if not the whole season, after being placed on the NFL’s commissioner’s exempt list on Sunday.
The 28-year-old was charged last week by the Brown County District Attorney’s Office with two misdemeanors after prosecutors say he threw his girlfriend to the ground, causing her to strike her head, among other damaging allegations in a criminal complaint.
The league’s decision means Jacobs can not play or practice with the team, but with the team’s permission, will be allowed to enter the team’s facility for meetings, workouts and treatments. He will be paid while on leave.
His future with the team remains uncertain as the Packers have not commented.
In the past, the NFL typically placed players on the list to wait for legal proceedings to play out before potentially issuing a suspension for the player. Jacobs’ next court hearing is not until Nov. 17, just after Week 10 of the season.
Only NFL commissioner Roger Goodell can remove Jacobs from the list. The move has been used with more regularity in recent years ever since former Minnesota Vikings great Adrian Peterson was placed on the list and sat out a full season in 2014 following child abuse allegations.
Now without a key piece of the offense, the Packers added running back depth on Sunday by trading for Kaleb Johnson from the Pittsburgh Steelers for a sixth-round pick, according to team reporters.
The Packers will have to cut down to 53 players later on Sunday, but the other backs on the roster are Marshawn Lloyd, Chris Brooks and Damien Martinez. The team released Jaden Nixon and Pierre Strong Jr. on Sunday, but it’s possible they could return to the practice squad.
Green Bay opens the season on Sunday, Sept. 13 on the road against the Vikings.
Drake Bentley is the general assignment reporter for the Milwaukee Courier, covering politics, sports and the community. He is an award-winning investigative journalist who has worked for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin State Journal, Newsweek, Heavy and The Sporting News. He is a northside Milwaukee native, former political staffer and graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the University of Nebraska.
