Green Bay Packers Preseason: No running back stood out Week 1
By Hunter Noll
The Green Bay Packers handled the Eagles to start their 2017 preseason, but no questions were really answered at running back.
The Green Bay Packers had no problems with the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1 of the preseason. Nevertheless, not everything is perfect for the Packers. With a logjam at running back, the hope was that a few would separate themselves from the pack during the preseason. After the first game, though, no running back has done anything to win, or lose, a spot.
Although it was just the preseason, it seemed like any regular season Packers game on Thursday. In their Week 1 victory over the Eagles, it was the air attack that led the way for Green Bay. The running game, however, not so much.
Over 18 combined carries, Green Bay ran for just 47 yards. Four of those carries, and 29 of those yards, were taken by the quarterbacks. That leaves a minuscule 18 yards on 14 carries for the running backs. This is bad news for the Packers, who don’t really seem to have a plan at running back this season. The idea was for two or three players to impress in the preseason. Week 1 gave no indication of that happening though.
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Rookie Jamaal Williams led the way with 14 yards on four carries. After him, Kalif Phillips picked up four yards on three carries. Ty Montgomery had three carries, while Aaron Jones and William Stanback both ran the ball twice. All three players picked up zero yards on the ground. Montgomery even registered a fumble.
Montgomery (eight receiving yards) and Jones (zero receiving yards) each had one catch as well.
What makes this even worse is that the Packers had perhaps two “almost locks” set in place. Williams did nothing to question his spot on the roster.
Meanwhile, Montgomery came into camp as the clear favorite for the starting running back role. His game certainly didn’t lose him a roster spot, but it’s hard to imagine the Packers are 100 percent locked into him starting any more. Fumbling the football is one of the quickest ways to find the bench. The fact that Montgomery’s only real contribution to the game was his fumble doesn’t bode well for the former receiver.
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The ineffectiveness of the running backs can’t be thrown completely on them though. While no one separated from the pack, combining for just 14 carries in a 15-point win seems extremely low. Maybe in Week 2 the running backs will get more carries. Even if that isn’t the case, though, a standout performance is needed from someone.