The Minnesota Vikings avoided having to go against Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs back in Week 1, and it looks like they'll avoid him again in Week 10. According to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports on Monday, Jacobs is set to undergo surgery on an injured finger this week and is expected to miss a maximum of three weeks.
Jacobs suffered a fractured right ring finger in Green Bay's Week 9 win over the New England Patriots on Sunday. It was his third game back after spending the first six games of the season on the commissioner's exempt list.
Jacobs has not been particularly effective since returning. The Packers have the worst rushing offense in the league, and only the moribund rushing attack of the Las Vegas Raiders has a lower yards-per-carry average. But he brought a dose of certainty and credibility that Green Bay's other running backs simply cannot.
Vikings run defense will get a big break in Week 10 with Josh Jacobs out
The way to beat the Vikings' defense this season has proven to be on the ground, and with a high volume of attempts lately, as the offense has struggled to sustain much of anything.
Heading into Monday night's game against the Buffalo Bills, their last two opponents, the Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions, have totaled 384 rushing yards on 72 attempts.
Back in Week 1, Minnesota held the Packers to 66 rushing yards on 21 attempts as Marshawn Lloyd and Chris Brooks split the backfield work. Lloyd missed Sunday's game against the Patriots with a knee injury, so his status for next week is unclear, and Brooks is on IR.
So it could be Kaleb Johnson and Pierre Strong spearheading the Green Bay ground game in the rematch against the Vikings, unless they make a deal for someone before Tuesday's trade deadline (and they have been a rumored suitor for Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor).
What the Packers did manage to do against Minnesota back in Week 1, as a preview of what they've done all season, is have success downfield through the air.
Jordan Love had 387 passing yards, with multiple chunk plays, including an 81-yard touchdown to Christian Watson. So in the rematch, they could very well just say, "Who needs a run game?" and think they have the right answers to Brian Flores' blitzing via the passing game.
That said, being without Jacobs is a bad thing for the Packers and a good thing for the Vikings. Lessons hopefully learned by Flores from Week 1 can be applied in Round 2 at Lambeau Field, and that'll be way easier with Green Bay's best running back out.
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