The Green Bay Packers needed a win and so did Eddie Lacy. The running back had dropped off the map this season as he dealt with injuries and poor production. Lacy lost out on his starting job to James Starks, but was the spark the Packers needed in Week 11 to get a win over the Minnesota Vikings. Now heading into a Thanksgiving showdown against the Chicago Bears, did Lacy do enough to get his starting job back?
Lacy finally broke free in Week 11, putting up 100 yards off 22 carries. He overtook Starks who had just eight carries in Week 11, but head coach Mike McCarthy is not ready to give Lacy the top job back just yet. According to the coach, he needs both Lacy and Starks to be productive if the Packers are going to turn things around in time for a late-season run to the postseason. He believes Lacy and Starks will be critical to that effort, but noted it was good to see the former first-round pick back in his groove.
"I think the past couple games," right guard TJ Lang said, via PackerNews.com "I don't think any individual ever deserves to take most of the heat like he has. A lot of rumors floating around about his weight, health. I think he was a guy who just had some injuries early on, kind of affected his confidence. I'm very, very, very happy for him. Obviously, I'm sure it's a big weight lifted off his shoulder, as it is really for the whole offense. We've all been taking our fair share of blame the last few weeks, which, you know, has been well deserved. For him to come out and have a big game like that, he's one of the guys you really root for."
Having Lacy and Starks be productive was good for Green Bay as injuries keep hitting the wide receiver group. Ty Montgomery continues to sit out with an ankle injury and might not be healthy in Week 12 following a setback. Jared Abbrederis who was a breakout star in place of Montgomery is also expected to be out several weeks according to PackersNews.com as he tries to heal from a rib injury. That has left things thin for Aaron Rodgers to work with. James Jones did see improvement in Week 11 which will be needed moving forward as he pairs with Randall Cobb and Davante Adams as the lone healthy bodies on the field.