Ladies and gentlemen. It took 9 games. But we did it, Joe. For the first time in the 2026 season, the Green Bay Packers accumulated more than 100 rushing yards in a game. Please clap.
Sarcasm aside, Sunday’s 129-yard performance against New England was indeed an encouraging development. But how did it happen? And can the Packers build on it?
Perhaps the biggest boon was the long awaited emergence of shadowy veteran guard Kevin Zeitler, who finally took his first real snaps since signing with the Packers
in late September. Coach Matt LaFleur has been cagey for weeks about why Zeitler hadn’t played yet and when fans could expect to see him. On Sunday, Zeitler stepped in to relieve an injured Aaron Banks, was benched for a short time as Banks attempted to return to action, but ultimately was re-inserted back into the lineup. For what it’s worth, it almost felt like a soft benching for Aaron Banks. With Zeitler in, Laken Tomlinson shifted to left guard, and the overall impact was immediately noticeable, particularly in the running game.
As Rcon wrote earlier this week, Green Bay averaged 4.93 yards per carry on Zeitler’s 15 run-blocking snaps, compared to just 3.18 without him. And not to cherry pick stats (insert cherry-picked stat), if you remove the garbage time snaps with Tyrod Taylor on the field, the Packers actually averaged 6.25 yards per carry with Zeitler on the field.
It’s a minuscule sample size, but the film showed a veteran doing exactly what Green Bay needs from its interior offensive line: winning assignments, creating space and giving runners somewhere to go.
Speaking of runners, let’s talk about Kaleb Johnson. With Marshawn Lloyd out and Josh Jacobs leaving early with a fractured finger, Johnson took advantage of an expanded opportunity, finishing with 68 yards on 14 carries and his first career touchdown. It wasn’t a banner day, but in an otherwise juiceless backfield, Johnson showed he has at least some juice. And not for nothing, but in almost every game he’s played in, he’s broken off one explosive run play.
One game doesn’t solve Green Bay’s rushing problems, but I do think it’s shown that being better than the worst run game in the league is not only possible, but perhaps even likely. It’s a low bar, but a guy can dream.
Do the Packers finally have an answer at running back?After months of ineptitude, the Packers averaged 4.0 yards per carry against the Patriots. Much of the productivity was led by second-year running back Kaleb Johnson.
ICYMI: Kevin Zeitler looked like Kevin Zeitler on SundayIt’s time for Matt LaFleur and company make the permanent switch at the right guard position.
Brenton Cox is outplaying his price tagEdge defender Brenton Cox, a former undrafted player, has thrived under Jonathan Gannon and will hit unrestricted free agency for the first time in 2027.
LISTEN: Toyotathon is on, and Jordan Love is ballingOne can’t help but admire how well Jordan Love continues to play in the face of consistent pressure and with no help from the run game.
Why Packers’ Jordan Love is the 2026 midseason MVPLove is doing more with less and doing it better than every other quarterback in the NFL through nine weeks of the 2026 season
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