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Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.
Green Bay Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd seems to have suffered yet another setback in his long-running quest to return to the football field.
The Packers officially ruled out Lloyd for Week 15’s game against the Denver Broncos when they released their final injury report on December 12, a move that is not entirely surprising given that he is still in his 21-day window to return from injured reserve.
What was surprising, however, was the Packers adding a “hamstring” injury for Lloyd on the injury report in addition to the previous calf injury that landed him on injured reserve on August 26 during the 53-man roster cutdown after NFL training camp.
The combination of injuries kept Lloyd off the field during December 12’s final practice for the Broncos game, marking the first time he has missed a practice since the Packers designated him for return on December 1. The new hamstring injury could also open the door to the possibility that Lloyd’s second NFL season will end without him playing a snap.
The Packers could also be without their starting tailback, Josh Jacobs, when they face the Broncos on the road. Jacobs is questionable with a knee injury that held him out of the week’s first two practices, but he did notably end the week as a limited participant.
The Packers (9-3-1) will kick off against the Broncos (11-2) at 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday, December 14.
Time for Packers to Give Up on MarShawn Lloyd?
The Packers are not ringing the doom bells just yet for Lloyd after he picked up a new hamstring injury in the second week of his 21-day window. After all, he still has more than a week to work through his injuries and clear the medical hurdles to earn an activation.
If Lloyd’s new combination of injuries forces the Packers to leave him on IR for the rest of the 2025 campaign, though, it may be time to start asking the difficult questions.
For all the (admittedly fading) hype surrounding Lloyd, he has played remarkably little for the Packers since they took him in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft. He took just six carries for 15 yards on 10 total offensive snaps in the only game he played as a rookie, missing the other 16 games with a combination of hamstring and ankle injuries and an emergency appendectomy that he underwent late in the 2024 regular season.
The injuries haven’t stopped in 2025, either. He briefly injured his groin at the start of his second training camp and then went down with a calf injury in the Packers’ second preseason game against the Colts, which resulted in his current stint on IR.
The Packers have shown they are willing to be patient with talent. Look no further than the three seasons they sat now-starting quarterback Jordan Love on the bench behind Aaron Rodgers — who went through the same thing with Brett Favre 15 years earlier.
If Lloyd winds up missing the rest of 2025, though, he will be lucky to even get another crack at making the Packers’ roster in 2026, especially if they retain Emanuel Wilson.
Josh Jacobs ‘Feeling Pretty Good’ Ahead of Broncos
While Lloyd presents a problem for another day, the Packers have a looming decision to make about Jacobs and whether he will play for them against the Broncos in Week 15.
Jacobs has spent roughly the past month dealing with swelling in his left knee resulting from a contusion that he suffered in Week 11’s victory over the New York Giants. While the injury has only sidelined Jacobs for one game so far, the situation with his knee is something he and the Packers have needed to re-evaluate on a “week-to-week” basis.”
Fortunately for the Packers, head coach Matt LaFleur indicated before Friday’s practice that Jacobs was trending in the right direction after sitting out the first two practices.
“We’ll see how he’s feeling,” LaFleur said. “Just talking to him, it sounds like he’s feeling pretty good, so we’ll see how he responds to the practice.”
Jordan J. Wilson is a sports reporter who covers the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers. He has previously covered all levels of sports — high school, college and pro — for a variety of publications including The Indianapolis Star, The News-Gazette, Springfield State-Journal Register and Peoria Journal Star. More about Jordan J. Wilson
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