It’s been a tumultuous offseason for Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs.
The 28-year-old three-time Pro Bowler was convicted on a battery charge and fined $1,000 stemming from a domestic violence incident with his girlfriend back in May. Jacobs pleaded no contest to the battery charges and criminal damage to property in court on Thursday — both of which are misdemeanors.
Jacobs has a follow-up court hearing on Sept. 10 of next year.
Because of his no-contest please, a judge can now decide on a legal sentence for Jacobs as if he was found guilty by a jury. The NFL can also decide if Jacobs will serve a suspension before being allowed to play this season, and he’s likely looking at a significantly less severe punishment than he was just days ago.
Josh Jacobs Looking at Multi-Game NFL Suspension
Initial reports speculated Jacobs was facing a suspension in the neighborhood of 10 or so games.
However, after Thursday’s development, Jacobs is looking at being sidelined for half as many games as initially believed.
“Josh Jacobs is now likely looking at a 2-6 game suspension based on previous cases like this. The odds of his video being leaked are lower because it’s his own footage from his own house,” Hayden Winks of Yahoo Sports posted on X.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport also shed some light on what the next steps look like for the NFL as it determines how long to suspend Jacobs for.
“[Thursday’s news] mostly wraps up his legal process, which means the NFL now could take action,” Rapoport said. “The NFL put out a statement saying they are still reviewing the manner closely and are still monitoring. They have had no change in his status — he is still on the commissioner’s exempt list.
“In order for the NFL to suspend Josh Jacobs, which from my understanding is still possible, they would like to interview him and they would like to continue the fact-finding process. He could, in fact, be taken off the commissioner’s exempt list and then suspended. If he does miss games while on the commissioner’s exempt list, that would count as time served for a possible suspension.”
Jacobs, NFL Issue Statements After His No-Contest Plea
After Jacobs’ Thursday court proceedings were revealed, both he and the NFL issued statements regarding the matter.
“I fully understand the seriousness of the situation and I take full responsibility,” Jacobs said, via ESPN’s Rob Demovsky.
“We have been closely monitoring all developments in the matter, which remains under review of the personal conduct policy,” the league said in a statement. “There is no change to his status as he remains on the Commissioner’s Exempt list.”
Jacobs’ status is still up in the air, but it’s confirmed he won’t play in Green Bay’s Week 1 matchup against the division rival Minnesota Vikings.
With the four-time 1,000-yard rusher out of commission, the Packers will rely on a trio of backs to pick up the slack.
Former USC star Marshawn Lloyd, 26-year-old backup Chris Brooks, and recently acquired third-round pick Kaleb Johnson all figure to get their share of touches with Jacobs out.
Major Update Emerges on Packers RB Josh Jacobs’ NFL Punishment