Anyone who watched Kaleb Johnson in an Iowa Hawkeyes uniform would’ve expected him to be a standout in the NFL.
The powerful running back instead has had an absolutely bizarre start to his NFL career, with the latest chapter arriving Sunday during Week 5 of the 2026 season for the Green Bay Packers.
Johnson, somehow, wasn’t getting on the field at all for Green Bay.
Of their first 32 RB snaps, 18 went to Marshawn Lloyd, and 14 went to Pierre Strong.
Packers RB snaps –
Lloyd 18
Strong 14
K Johnson 0— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) October 11, 2026
Why Isn’t Kaleb Johnson Playing?
The Packers have apparently decided that they’d rather play Lloyd and Strong.
Lloyd makes sense. He’s been used frequently early in the season with Josh Jacobs unavailable.
Strong is a surprise, though. He’s a practice squad elevation and would’ve been viewed as behind Johnson heading into that game.
That hasn’t played out in the usage, though.
It’s not clear whether Johnson may have some small injury that they’re protecting, or if the Packers are slowly losing their faith in Johnson much in the same way the Pittsburgh Steelers did previously.
Kaleb Johnson NFL Career
Johnson was sent to the Packers from the Pittsburgh Steelers before this season.
He had eight carries for 32 yards in Week 2, four for six in Week 3, and eight for 42 in Week 3.
Despite that, Johnson wasn’t getting on the field in Week 5.
Johnson had been a third-round pick, No. 83 overall, in the 2025 NFL Draft by the Steelers.
He played in just 10 games as a rookie, though, and ran 28 times for 69 yards. He was essentially a non-factor.
Kaleb Johnson Iowa Stats
Johnson was an absolute monster in the 2024 season for Iowa.
He ran 240 times that season for a Big Ten-best 1,537 yards, an average of 6.4 yards per carry.
He also led the Big Ten with a massive 21 rushing TDs.
Johnson added 22 catches that season for 188 yards and two scores.
He had run for 1,242 yards across his first two college seasons, then topped that all by itself in his final year.
Clearly, the NFL at least believed in him some, otherwise Johnson wouldn’t have been a third-round pick.
The Steelers quickly gave up on him, though, so he obviously didn’t impress them over the course of his rookie season.
Again, there may be a more real explanation for an odd absence on Sunday for the Packers, but it’s clearly not a step forward in Johnson’s NFL career which once seemed like a sure thing to be positive.
Why Iowa Legend Kaleb Johnson Isn’t Playing Today For Packers