The Green Bay Packers are focused on feeding Eddie Lacy…on the football field, that is.
Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said after Week 2 that the team is committed to getting their running backs more carries moving forward.
“The analysis of our offense after two games, the running backs have not been given enough opportunities,” McCarthy said, per Rob Demovsky of ESPN. “So that’s something that I need to focus on.”
Running backs coach Ben Sirmans agreed, zeroing in on Lacy specifically.
“I wish he was averaging 24 handoffs a game,” Sirmans said on Thursday. “Sometimes, the flow of the game doesn’t dictate that. When you miss a couple of third downs where you have some three-and-outs or you’ve got a four-play drive, not getting those first downs, those are carries that would be going to him. That happened a little bit at different points in this last game.
“I would definitely like to see him carry the ball 20, 25 times a game,” Sirmans continued. “We’ll see when that happens. That’s what you expect going into each game, but it’s all based on what happens.”
Lacy, the former Pro Bowler, has gotten a combined 26 carries for 111 yards in Green Bay’s first two games. That’s by no means heavy usage, but it’s to be expected from an Aaron Rodgers offense. The good news is that James Starks has been ineffective with just 11 carries for 10 total yards thus far, so Lacy would be the biggest beneficiary of a greater emphasis on the run game.
There was some talk about a timeshare before the season began, but a slimmed-down Lacy that Green Bay is intent on getting the pigskin to is nothing short of a fantastic development for the fourth-year pro and his fantasy owners.
