SEPTEMBER 3: Both Pompei and Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post have clarified that the Giants did not make an official offer to Jacobs. The team was one of many which was in on the veteran running back market, as evidenced by the Singletary deal. That update is notable given the financial details Jacobs mentioned, although expressions of interest and formal contract proposals are of course two different things. Jacobs’ Packers performance will remain a key storyline within the reshaped running back landscape in 2024.
AUGUST 29: Josh Jacobs‘ free agency featured several teams in on the former rushing champion. Half of the AFC West was interested, though that does not appear to include the Raiders.
After Jacobs said he did not meet with new Raiders GM Tom Telesco about re-signing, the sixth-year running back noted (via The Athletic’s Dan Pompei) he took the Packers’ four-year, $48MM offer back to his original team. The Raiders did not match, but Jacobs had said he would agree to stay for less than Green Bay’s offer if Las Vegas included incentives. Moving toward a setup with a much lower-cost backfield, the Raiders declined.
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This effort came after a few teams reached out to Jacobs’ camp with interest. The Broncos, Cardinals, Giants and Texans were previously mentioned as suitors, with Pompei adding the Dolphins and Bears also expressed some degree of interest. But the former first-round pick said the Chiefs also expressed interest. Some old-school animosity, even regarding a rivalry that probably peaked in the 1960s and early ’70s, factored into Jacobs’ decision to not reciprocate that interest.
“They were trying to get me hard,” Jacobs said of the Chiefs. “But there was no way I was going there. I feel like once you are rivals with somebody, you have a genuine hate for them. I couldn’t see myself in that color. And besides, I never wanted to be the guy that joined the dominant team. I want to be the guy that beats the dominant team.”
It is unclear if the Chiefs made an offer on par with the Packers’, but Green Bay’s proposal included just $12.5MM guaranteed at signing. The Packers traditionally do not include second-year guarantees for non-quarterbacks, though they would owe Jacobs a $5.93MM roster bonus on Day 5 of the 2025 league year. It represents a decent bet Jacobs is a Packer for at least two seasons, though the Chiefs’ pursuit is interesting given the makeup of their RB room.
Kansas City has starter Isiah Pacheco at seventh-round money for two more seasons, and the team re-signed Clyde Edwards-Helaire for just one year and $1.7MM. Kansas City did host J.K. Dobbins before the Edwards-Helaire recommitment, but the oft-injured ex-Raven agreed to a low-cost Chargers deal to reunite with Greg Roman. Kansas City has not spent much on running backs during the Andy Reid era. Reid coached Jamaal Charles for four seasons and signed off on a 2014 extension, but that only guaranteed the elusive RB $8.3MM. Charles’ more notable extension came back in 2010 under Scott Pioli.
The team’s Jacobs interest is an interesting “what if?” regarding Pacheco’s status, but the hard-charging runner having gained 1,765 rushing yards in two seasons certainly represents great value from the seventh round. Edwards-Helaire, rookie UDFA Carson Steele and the recently added Samaje Perine join the starter as the AFC West power aims for a threepeat.
Additionally, Jacobs indicated (via Pompei) the Giants offered around $3-$4MM more than the Packers. Though, this account does not specify if that means $3-$4MM more per year, in total or in guarantees. The Giants guaranteed Devin Singletary $9.5MM on a three-year, $16.5MM deal. Jacobs has been a better player during his career, and he committed to the Packers around two hours before the ex-Bills draftee joined the Giants.
The Giants were also willing to guarantee Saquon Barkley around $22MM via their 2023 extension offer. Big Blue memorably balked at another Barkley deal, but they appear to have been willing to go beyond where they went for Singletary to add Jacobs, who balked at New York due to taxes, the media market and MetLife Stadium’s turf.
The Giants and Raiders both let their standout backs play out seasons on the franchise tag; Jacobs said his 2023 negotiations broke trust with the Las Vegas regime. This went far enough Jacobs revealed to Pompei he was willing to report in late November in order to collect an accrued season, but the then-Dave Ziegler-led Raiders front office became the rare team to provide a raise for a tagged player. Jacobs signed a one-year, $11.8MM tender — north of the $10.1MM number attached to Barkley and Tony Pollard.
Jacobs, 26, did end up stumping for Antonio Pierce, but he does not appear to have been especially high on the Ziegler-Josh McDaniels regime, indicating “trust was missing” regarding he and the team going into last season. These comments do, however, come after the Alabama alum had said the slate was clean after he signed his franchise tender.
The Raiders, who were believed to be interested in re-signing Jacobs (just not at the rate other teams went to), have given backup Zamir White their starting job, with primary 2023 Vikings starter Alexander Mattison set as the backup.
Were the Chiefs hoping he would ring chase for cheap? That’s the only reason I would go for him, Pacheco is fine. They do need a good backup/replacement for him if he gets hurt tho.
KC never went after him serious, Jacobs is silly to say otherwise. They may have made a call to his agent asking if he could be had at $7-8m plus incentives but they never had serious interest and never made an offer.
Jacobs signed on day 1 of free agency and the reason is because no franchise was offering $10m+ for any single season other than GBP. For Jacobs to act otherwise is disingenuous at best and dishonest at worst.
I agree. I like Jacobs, but I figure there is a bout a 50/50 chance Pacecho out-performs Jacobs this year. I doubt that they put $12M on the table without getting a clear upgrade.
And if the NYG weren’t going hard after Barkley, why would they go hard after Jacobs?
That’s not a four year $48 million contract, but a two year $23 million contract. There’s no way Jacobs is collecting on more than two years. It may be even be a $15 million one year contract with an option for a second year at $8 million. That’s assuming the Packers cut Jacobs before the fifth league day in 2025 (which they will if they don’t want him back) to avoid paying the 2025 $6 million roster bonus.
Not that Jacobs shouldn’t have signed. No one else was going to offer a mid-career, near elite but not quite, running back more on his way down.
100% accurate on all. You fully understand critical thinking, Alec!
Jacobs could have a stellar season
Maybe. Or he could do his normal thing and average 4 YPC and under, just like he has in three of his first five seasons. Green Bay has an average OL at best, especially with Runyan going to NYG. You can expect them to throw the ball 30+ times every single game and be behind in many of those.
Runyan was the weakest link on the OL last year. And they have a 1st round pick there. The OL as a whole is ranked 12th with PFF, and that’s with the extreme youth at LT and RG that will only get better.
If you want to talk about an awful line, let’s talk about the 2023 Raiders line…
As far as “expecting them to throw 30+ times a game and be behind in most of them?!” LOL show your haterade more, why don’t you.
I expect them to win the NFCN and be a Super Bowl threat. The truth will probably be somewhere in between. They’re a playoff team minimum.
I’m not hating, just being realistic based on what I saw last year and the little football I know.
Love threw the ball 30+ in 2023 in all but 4 games and that number will be under 2 in 2024. The Packer offense will comfortably run with 30+ passes, not through Josh Jacobs who will average roughly 12-15 carries and catch it 3-5 times, just like every Packers back for the past decade. But, you’ll be paying him roughly $12M. Just wait for your buyers remorse on his time in Green Bay…
You can pull the PFF #’s as a ranking to prop up your position on their OL but 12th is average at best, exactly like I said. Packers might win the division but to say you ‘expect’ them to win it over Detroit tells me you are a homer.
And I don’t disagree about the Raiders line being bad in 2023 but do expect improvement from that group in 2024 with much better coaching in place. That said, Zamir White ran for 4.6 YPC behind the exact same line that Jacobs averaged 3.5.
There won’t be buyers remorse. If Jacobs is bad, (and I don’t think he will be), the contract can be cut short after this year. Even more so after next year. Plus, 15-20 touches a game is a LOT. Over 300 for the year. I’d say that’s getting their money’s worth.
RE White/Jacobs: Sample size with that YPC difference there, buddy. And let’s not forget that RBs after 400 touch years always have a down next year, understandably. The 2nd year after, many recover.
Further, 12th is above average, just based on statistics. 16th would be average. They were a top 10 line last year by the end of the year, and I expect that again.
And yes, I think it’s a fair expectation for the Packers to “win” the NFCN and be a Super Bowl Threat, but I would not be surprised if the Lions won it either. They have a very good team too. Both teams are Super Bowl worthy going into the year. I think the Packers are better because they have a better QB than the Lions and a better HC, IMO. But we’ll see. That’s why they play the game.
As I was saying, your hate is showing. Either of Jacobs, or of the Packers. I don’t really know. But you are definitely not giving any benefit of the doubt to a front office and head coach who have proven, time and again, to be one of the best in the business.
Again, I have no hate. Just calling balls and strikes and JJ was an ineffective malcontent of a RB for 5 years with the Raiders who wanted to be paid as a top 5 back. I do not have much confidence based on that reasoning to believe it will improve in Green Bay.
Raiders got 300+ touches out of him once and that was in a contract year. While you extrapolate that 15 touches per game will figure to 300+ touches, I would also bet my house that he doesn’t clear 270 carries this season because history tells us that. Which, at $11.8M per season, is a bit of an overpay unless he manages over 4 yards per carry.
Well, he did last night… looked real good in the 2nd half. Pretty darn fine considering the Eagles won the LOS on both sides of the ball all night.
You’re not going to do this all season, are you? Again, I have no skin in the game here other than to call balls and strikes but you are obviously a sensitive GBP fan. You think JJ had a great game, one worthy of $12M annually. Okay. I saw that he had 14 carries for 30 yards and 2 carries for 50. Decent cumulative stats that made absolutely no impact in the game whatsoever, watched it for 5 seasons in Silver/Black.
Meanwhile your backup RB ran for an average of 12 per carry. Why? Cause he picked a hole and hit it versus dancing into the line like JJ does, no matter who ‘wins the LOS’.
Also, you’re 0-1 and likely have less than a 10% chance of winning your division without your QB so your ‘we’re winning the division’ prediction is off to a rocky start.
Jacobs was correct to turn down both Kansas City (cos he’s not a criminal) and the Giants (cos they act like they’re entitled).
BTW, the bad blood between the Chiefs and the Raiders has been resurrected after the Silver and Black won on Xmas Day in K.C.
Don’t let Jacobs fool you, he didn’t have offers from either NYG or KC as both simply reached out to see if he could be signed at a discounted rate. Jacobs signed with GBP on day 1 because it was his only offer at $10+ per year salary. It’s not that hard to see the reality through the bulls*it that Jacobs spews, kinda like his dumb comments about not being able to wear green when they play in Brazil due to gang warfare.
He’s unfortunately an uneducated moron who thinks he’s smarter than he is. Good football player, but generally an unintelligent human.
Not to mention the Chiefs taking home a title at Arrowhead West
The Chiefs don’t like ALL criminals cause they’d have another superbowl championship if Hunt didn’t knock over a drunk girl with his foot and get released.
LMAO knock a drunk girl over with his foot?
Yeah she was drunk and was probably being obnoxious, but dude literally pushed her…than slapped her in the face, than literally kicked her…..might of been harder if he didnt have his boy pulling on him to get away
Not a criminal…..but he would be fine playing for the Raiders which is a team known for hiring criminals and being the dirtiest football team in history?
“I never wanted to be the guy that joined the dominant team.” Dude, you went to Bama!
Apparently this story is 100% fabricated
Smart now he can just never win in GB. $ is $
I miss those days when the Chiefs and Raiders had an absolute hate for each other. It was pro football’s best rivalry but times have certainly changed.
link to youtube.com
Believe me, we still hate the Chiefs with a passion. Thing about it is, they don’t care much about us since they are winning rings….
Can’t be this way forever though, right?!
RN4L!