ASHWAUBENON, WISCONSIN - JUNE 09: Josh Jacobs #8 of the Green Bay Packers participates in drills during the Green Bay Packers mandatory minicamp at Don Hutson Center on June 09, 2026 in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)
Packers RB Josh Jacobs’ first remarks since being convicted for injuring his ex-girlfriend
Green Bay Packers star running back Josh Jacobs addressed reporters for the first time since returning to the active roster after being sidelined for allegedly getting physical with his ex-girlfriend causing her injuries.
Jacobs was taken off the NFL commissioner’s exempt list on Monday, Oct 19. He is expected to suit up and play on Sunday, Oct. 25, in Detroit against the Lions.
“I think six games was a lot. But that’s not up to me to decide,” Jacobs said Wednesday, Oct. 21. “I thought it (would) be sooner, but the optics of everything, I understand the other side. I also understand the NFL’s point of view. It’s not something that I’m like angry at or anything, I’m just ready to come play. I’m just grateful to be able to play. It was one of those things where I didn’t want to sit the whole year and then figure it out.
Jacobs pleaded no contest on Sept. 10 to misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor criminal damage to property charges following a May 23 dispute with his then-girlfriend
Jacobs said he met with the team to take “accountability” and apologized for bringing “attention” to the organization.
“First, I’m excited to be back with the team, with the guys. I want to say thank you to the organization really for supporting me throughout this whole process and how everything played out,” he said. “With that being said, I can’t get into a lot of things, like the specifics of things. Obviously, I’m remorseful and sorry for putting this team in this situation.
“I was just apologizing to the guys because I know a lot of guys look up to me, a lot of guys come to me with real life issues and things that go on in their lives. So for me, being that guy for a lot of people, it’s weird when you take that fall. For me, it’s trying to show everybody that I’m not better than the next person. I still deal with my own personal things. But at the end of day, just know I’m gonna still be here, I’m gonna still show up and I’m still gonna be the same guy. The main story for me when we had that meeting was me being apologetic for the attention it’s brought to this team. Having the guys having to answer or watch what they say when it comes to that. So that was something I had to take accountability for.
“Sometimes when you go through life, situations occur and a four-second, three-second decision can alter life. I’m still a human being. Still trying to learn, still trying to grow from the whole process. I actually learned a lot throughout this process, legally and just personally. Going forward it’s just trying to be better. For some people this might be a stain on me and my character. I feel like I don't have to speak on my character. A lot of people who know me in this locker room, or that’s been around me, I’ll let them do that. But for me, I’m just trying to come back in here and play ball, learn from this mistake and move forward.”
Jacobs was asked what he would tell Packers fans who lost trust in his ability to be a leader in the community.
“When it comes to earning the respect from the fans, for me, it’s more of a thing of not trying to put this organization in a position where it looks negative in any type of way,” he said. “At the end of the day, people are always gonna have their opinion, people gonna believe what they want to believe, and it’s not really my job to try to explain or discount certain things. All I can do is control what I can control and move on from there.
“Honestly, me personally, I’m not trying to win nobody back, and that’s just me being all the way honest. At the end of the day, like I said, I know what happened. And if you feel some type of way … obviously I felt bad because still a situation occurred and should’ve never even happened. So, that’s something that I will still understand if people feel some type of way by it. All I can do is keep showing up and being who I am, being a leader for this team, being a leader in this community.”
Jacobs and the victim in the case are both suing the local police department, seeking that records, videos from the incident be sealed and not released to the public. Much of the incident was captured on surveillance footage.
While on the commissioner’s exempt list, Jacobs could be at the facility and attend meetings, but he was not allowed to practice or play. He said he learned a lot about himself throughout the process.
“Just me being honest, for my life, it was probably one the best things that ever happened to me. And I say that because it gave me a chance to sit down (and) reevaluate what’s important and what do I want my life to look like and what do I want people to know me for, when they think of me what they gonna say.
“Another thing that it showed me, the people that was in my corner. A lot of people that I didn’t know or expect to be in my corner, they showed up. So that was huge for me. It gave me more appreciation and more love honestly for this organization and this team.”
With the NFL’s worst rushing attack, Green Bay (4-2) is fortunate to have Jacobs back as they head into Detroit (3-2) on Sunday.
Drake Bentley is the general assignment reporter for the Milwaukee Courier, covering politics, sports and the community. He is an award-winning investigative journalist who has worked for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin State Journal, Newsweek, Heavy and The Sporting News. He is a northside Milwaukee native, former political staffer and graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the University of Nebraska.
Mike Clemens is a veteran Wisconsin sportscaster who has spent decades covering the Packers, Brewers, Bucks and Badgers from press boxes, sidelines and locker rooms across the country. A longtime contributor to SiriusXM NFL Radio, the Wisconsin Radio Network, The Bill Michaels Show and Civic Media, Clemens has covered more than 20 Super Bowls, two Packers championships and the Brewers’ 1982 World Series appearance.
