With Aaron Rodgers out with an injury, Eddie Lacy is the center piece of the Green Bay Packers offense. The rookie was already in the midst of a breakout season with the team after running became a bigger focus for the offense, but with the starting quarterback out Lacy's numbers were expected to skyrocket. However, that has not been the case lately.
Lacy has seen his carries increase with the absence of Rodgers, but now he is no longer taking defenses by surprise. Backup quarterback Scott Tolzien has been hanging in the best he can, but now opposing teams are anticipating Lacy getting the ball on almost every play, leaving him little room to succeed.
The rookie put together one of his worst performances in Week 11 against a tough New York Giants defense. He managed just 27 yards on 14 carries. The Giants made it a priority to stop the run game and force Tolzien into passing situations. All of that proved to be an epic disaster.
Much of Lacy's struggles can be chalked up to Rodgers sitting on the sideline. According to ESPN's Stats and Information, the Packers have faced seven or more defenders in the box in the past two games with Rodgers out. Lacy has little to no room to run compared to the first eight games where the Packers had a perfectly balanced offense. The result has been 73 yards against the Eagles and 27 against the Giants. Prior to the Rodgers injury, Lacy had 150 yards against the Chicago Bears.
One person coming to the defense of Lacy's performance the past two weeks is Adrian Peterson. The Vikings running back has been outspoken with his praise for the rookie. Prior to the season, Peterson said Lacy was the rookie that impressed him the most coming out of the NFL Draft. Naturally, the Minnesota veteran knows what it is like when the offense becomes much more one dimensional and the run game suffers as a result.
"Lacy, he had come in and helped their running game tremendously," said Peterson, via NFL.com. "But it shows with Aaron Rodgers not back there how big of a difference he makes and what he means to that offense. So that situation right there is a perfect one to look at."
Lacy is expected to bounce back against the Minnesota Vikings. In the team's last meeting, he put up 94 yards on 29 carries and a touchdown. The Minnesota defense is not nearly as scary as the unit the Giants have. Even with Tolzien as the expected starter for the team, Lacy may be able to put up a few more yards against a weaker team. The running back will likely get at least 20 carries so fantasy owners should be prepared for a nice week.
