Getty
Running back Josh Jacobs of the Green Bay Packers.
The Green Bay Packers went through it on Week 15, as they watched Micah Parsons go down for the season with an ACL tear and Christian Watson exit the game with a chest injury.
Green Bay is now in considerably worse position within the NFC North Division following its loss to the Denver Broncos, currently in second place and trailing the Chicago Bears by a half-game. The Packers travel to Soldier Field on Saturday, December 20 for a Week 14 rematch with the Bears and will do so without Parsons. And based on an update from head coach Matt LaFleur on Tuesday, they may also be playing down running back Josh Jacobs.
“He’s battling through. He’s as tough as they come, so I’ll never count him out of the fight,” LaFleur said of Jacobs. “But if we were practicing today, he absolutely would not practice.”
LaFleur added that Jacobs took a big hit to the knee early on against Denver, which could complicate his health issues as the week wears on.
Josh Jacobs’ Injury Complicates Packers’ Plan of Attack Against Bears Next Week, Bid for Playoff Spot in NFC
GettyRunning back Josh Jacobs of the Green Bay Packers.
Jacobs will not be helped by the NFL’s recent decision to slate the Bears-Packers matchup for Saturday instead of Sunday, as part of the league’s late-season schedule transition to include some Saturday games.
The Packers’ RB1 sustained the initial injury, a contusion to his knee, during the team’s Week 11 matchup against the New York Giants on November 16. Jacobs missed the following contest against the Minnesota Vikings, but has been able to go in each of the last three outings.
Jacobs has proven effective in all of those games, averaging just under 81 rushing yards per contest. He has also caught five passes for 33 yards over that span and has found the end zone three times (two rushing TDs, one receiving TD).
Should Jacobs enter the weekend with an injury designation of any kind, which he has each of the last three weeks, Green Bay will face a difficult decision come Saturday.
On the one hand, Jacobs is going to be crucial to exploiting Chicago’s weakness in defending the run — No. 23 overall through Week 15 — and helping the Packers recapture the division lead. On the other, hampering Jacobs for the stretch run could mean the Packers miss the playoffs anyway.
And should Green Bay make the postseason regardless, playing Jacobs too soon might mean he can’t go come playoff time, or that he’s too hurt to be truly effective once the Packers hit the single-elimination portion of the campaign.
Christian Watson Healthy, Will Play Against Bears in Week 16
GettyWide receiver Christian Watson of the Green Bay Packers.
The good news coming out of Green Bay following a rough game in Denver is that Watson should be a go for the Packers in Chicago on Saturday.
“You haters aren’t going to get what you want tonight,” Watson’s father wrote on social media Sunday. “#9 is fine!”
Watson has brought back a true vertical threat for quarterback Jordan Love and the Packers offense since he returned to action in late October following a nine-month absence due to an ACL injury.
Watson has recorded 28 catches for 481 yards and five touchdowns across eight games played in 2025.
Max Dible covers the NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. He covered local and statewide news as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and served as news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group’s family of Big Island radio stations before joining Heavy. More about Max Dible
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